Why does morning have to come so early?

Snuggled beneath a down comforter and flannel sheets while blissfully cocooned in warmth, I dream about beaches and palm trees. The beeping begins. Staccato and innocent at first, it reminds me gently to wake up. beep, beep, beep.

Since I am still miles away in my subconscious, the beeping continues. Louder and more abrupt as if to say "I mean it. Time to get up." Beep, Beep, Beep. I pull the covers over my head and start clinging desperately to sleep.

Thankfully, my tropical dream does not give up easily. In my mind I still see gentle waves and feel the light of the sun on my face. But suddenly I hear it; the loud insistent beeping shatters the stillness of my house and dissolves my dream with its annoying BEEP, BEEP, BEEP!

I throw the covers off and reach across the nightstand to locate the rudest, most unrelenting piece of electronics I own. With a satisfying thump, I slap the button on top of my alarm clock and sink back into my cocoon of warmth in search of tropical paradise and just ten more minutes of sleep.

The maddening beeping returns ten minutes later. In semi-concious childlike petulance I say to myself, I'm not getting up. No one is going to make me. I'm staying right here.

As in reply, a flood of responsibilities fill my mind: three girls to wake, feed and dress, while getting two of them off to school, and a jumble of other boring responsibilities to mundane to list.

I shrug off my cozy blankets and locate my fuzzy bathrobe. My impression in the pillow calls to me like a matching puzzle piece. Regretfully, I leave the bedroom in search of the coffee maker and the beginning of my day.

Holding a steaming mug in two hands in the pre-dawn quiet of my kitchen I pray, Lord help me be successful today. Help me to accomplish all the tasks set in front of me, while taking care of the family you have given me.

On my way to wake my daughters, I pass my bedroom and see the innocent alarm on my bedside table. I nod respectfully at the victor and turn away from the siren call of my bed.

How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep?A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest-and poverty will come on you like a bandit, and scarcity like an armed man. Proverbs 6: 9-11