by Cathy
As if waking up in a subzero tundra of a city isn't bad enough, we in Chicago have to contend with the idiosyncrasies of the sun and its temperamental cycles - namely, refusing to break the day open on a city submerged in negative wind chills and arctic gusts. And when it does decide to grace us with its presence during the winter months, it prefers for us, mere humans, to wake it from its stubborn slumber rather than the other way around - a rather unnatural phenomenon.
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| Chicago already awakened before winter's sunrise |
Instead of feeling the warm light break through my bedroom blinds and gently roll its way up to my face, kiss my cheek and open my eyes, it is nowhere to be found these days. This abandonment of sorts leaves me to my own awakening devices, consisting of a shrill alarm clock, a chilly bedroom and darkness just as evident as when I lay down to sleep. There is absolutely no incentive to wake up on a cold, dark day - especially when heaven comes in the form of a cozy, warm bed.
I realize that many people, my dad included, have been waking up before sunrise regardless of the season, since the beginning of time. They are at the mercy of the hours their jobs command. I remember lamenting as a child to my mother, after hearing the front door of the house close and awakening to see that it was still dark:
"Wow. Dad leaves when it's dark and he comes home when it's dark."
That seemed so wrong to me at the time and not much has changed about the way I feel about it now.
Thankfully, the days have begun to lengthen once more and the sun is gradually creeping out of that seasonal corner it hides in. Until the days grow to be 10 feet tall once more, we will awake, reluctantly, begrudgingly, unnaturally, before sunrise. Our hearts gloomy, our thoughts rooted in that glimmer of hope that comes in the form of spring not too far away.
