Moodsurfing has frequently recommended the concept of the “morning ritual” or “morning routine” to help all of us live more creatively with moods. However, keeping a morning ritual is easier said than done! For people with kids, jobs, pets, plumbing emergencies and all the rest of life, keeping to a routine may get moved to the back burner more often than not. Paradoxically, it is just at those times when routine seems completely lost, that moving back to the routine can be a lifesaver.
Getting up at approximately the same time each morning, following the same steps to get ready each day (write them down if necessary), getting early sunlight exposure, and sticking to the program no matter what, these are the ingredients to a strong routine that can will be waiting for you to resume it every time life intervenes.
When the unexpected strikes and the routine gets left behind, you still have your list of steps for the morning and rebooting even a few of them helps the return to stability. For examply, when someone in the household is sick, you can’t keep exactly to all the steps, but the existence of the routine (even when not being followed) gives you a sense of what really needs to get done, and how to slot it into a mixed-up day.
No matter how chaotic life gets, having that one quiet cup of coffee beside a sunny window can help balance the whole day, and by starting with small steps, the entire routine can come back online as the immediate crisis passes.
A morning ritual is not just a good idea, it’s a practical approach to keeping on course through all the ups and downs of daily life. Just remembering that I used to be following a routine at this time of day can give me the impetus to re-establish those simple, basic steps that help me get everything done without getting lost.