My gold chair

This is my gold chair. If I could write an "ode to the gold chair," I would. Instead I'll share a bit of my daily routine because sitting in my gold chair is one of my favorite things about being home again. I am able to get myself out of bed at 6 a.m. because I know I just have to stumble to the kitchen to turn on the hot water kettle and soon I'll be sitting in my chair.

Usually I get 15 minutes here each morning before the day starts and Nick is down for his breakfast. I turn on the heater next to the chair, sometimes cuddle up in a blanket, just hold my tea and look around. Sounds crazy, but if dawn is breaking I watch the sky change; otherwise, I look at the little sayings I have on the bookcase next to the chair, sayings like "Make it your practice to withdraw attention from the past and future whenever they are not needed," which allow me just to sit and be and feel so lucky to be in such a cozy chair, in such a warm room, with such delicious tea! Another saying encourages me to think about what lies ahead today and concentrate on what there is to be thankful for. A clipping from The Economist notes the dire situation in three districts of Uganda where 95% of the population is on the run from rebels whose brutality "churns the stomach"; nothing like a dose of reality to make you realize how lucky you are.

If I am really lucky, at some other point in the day I'm able to return to the chair for a "time out" with a book (here: Michael Gorra's The Bells in Their Silence: Travels Through Germany).