First Light Is My Favorite Time Of Day…

“Lift up your eyes on high, and see who has created these things.”  Isaiah 40:26

‘First Light’….IS my favorite time of day!

‘First light’ is the time in the early morning when light first appears and before the sun’s actual rise.

I love ‘First Light’, and to me it is more pleasant than the actual sunrise, which is beautiful in its own right.

God’s Nature is at its best at this heavenly hour called ‘First Light’. 

Let me try to describe what I see and feel.

It is when the first golden rays of the sun, s-l-o-w-l-y begin to “color in” the soft, muted colors of the very early morning, into a brighter coloring of the clouds, oceans, meadows, valleys and mountains. (depending on where one is)

‘First Light’ marks the beginning journey of the sun in the sky as it moves toward the horizon.

I read the term ‘First Light’ in 1994 when reading the first of author Jan Karon’s “Mitford Series” books…. and it has “stuck” with me ever since.

I like to be up and about at ‘First Light’,  as did Father Tim, (from the book series)

Father Tim mentions ‘First Light’ several times in each book. It is when he starts his day.

Who is Father Tim you may ask?

Father Tim is an elderly Episcopal parish priest, living in a small village of North Carolina. according to this fictional book series. 

The book series has long since ended…but ‘First light’ became and is still a part of my personal daily routine.

You will find me sitting in one of my outdoor spaces with my first cuppa hot tea or coffee as the late evening skies begin to show muted light rays of the beginning of a new day.

The sky is so beautiful at that early morning hour, just before the sun comes up..

It is when I have my quiet time… and I also check my Daytimer for appointments, meal planning and other things. 

(These days I might tend to forget appointments such as doctor’s visits or I could forget someone’s birthday, ….(I blame it on “Chemo Brain”)….my Daytimer keeps me more organized.)

Usually, the only early morning sounds I hear, are the soft cooing of a pair of turtle doves who reside in my ficus hedges.

I love that.

And yes, I say ‘good morning’ to them out loud.

As I sit here, wanting to put pen to paper for this post, (so to speak)…I reminisce about how this book from so many years ago influenced my joy regarding this early morning hour.

Example: When I first entered married life… (seems like a hundred years ago)…I liked to sleep late.

That changed of course when I had to join the working force and when I had children, but Saturdays were always a “sleep late” morning.

And now, I am what one might call an early morning person.

A very early morning person and I enjoy every minute of it.

Thank you Father Tim for introducing me to ‘First Light’ !!! (perhaps you might call it dawn)

May I share a bit of this book series with you?

Below is the synopsis of the first book.

“Enter the world of Mitford, and you won’t want to leave.
It’s easy to feel at home in Mitford. In these high, green hills, the air is pure, the village is charming, and the people are generally lovable.
Yet, Father Tim, the bachelor rector, wants something more. Enter a dog the size of a sofa who moves in and won’t go away. Add an attractive neighbor who begins wearing a path through the hedge. Now, stir in a lovable but unloved boy, a mystifying jewel theft, and a secret that’s sixty years old.
Suddenly, Father Tim gets more than he bargained for. And readers get a rich, provincial comedy in which mysteries and miracles abound.”

The following are a few reviews of this series.

Reviewer:

“The central character is a priest—does this mean the book is preachy? No, it isn’t, but at the same time it has a large amount of religious content. References are made to passages in the Bible. One returns many times to the value of faith and prayer, not as a lecture, but simply because it is in these terms that Father Tim thinks.”

Reviewer:

pg. 165 “Do you like the fall of the year?”
The man gave an odd laugh. “Why?”
“One of the things that makes a dead leaf fall to the ground is the bud of the new leaf that pushes it off the limb. When you let God fill you with HIs love and forgiveness, the things you think you desperately want to hold on to start falling away… and we hardly notice their passing.”

pg. 172 “For a long time afterward, he sat by the fire, feeling the joy of Christmas, and knowing with unsearchable happiness that Christ did, indeed, live in his heart. Not because he was a “preacher.” Not because he was, after a fashion, “good.” But because, long ago, he had asked him to.”

pg. 229 “Rain again! he thought, as he put the tea kettle on. But every drop that fell contained the promise of another leaf, another blossom, another blade of grass in the spring.”

pg. 278 “Commit thy works unto the Lord and thy thoughts shall be established.”

pg. 288 Uncle Billy shook his head. “Y’ know, Preacher, th’ more things you own, th’ more you’re owned by things…”

pg. 362 “How could he have considered taking Monday off? Monday was the diving board poised over the rest of the week. One walked out on the board, reviewed the situation, planned one’s strategy, bounced a few times to get the feel of things, and then made a clean dive. With out Monday, one simply bombed into the water, belly first, and hoped for the best.”

Here are a few of my favorite quotes from the book series.

• “But “common sense is not faith,” Oswald Chambers had written, “and faith is not common sense.”
•  “Thank you, God, for loving me, and for sending your Son to die for my sins. I sincerely repent of my sins, and receive Christ as my personal savior. Now, as your child, I turn my entire life over to you. Amen.”
•  “Father Tim: Know that God has a plan for your future. Watch and wait for his timing, and when it comes, hitch a ride. You’ll know.”
• “Listening is among the most generous ways to give. When a loved one talks to us— whether their words appear to be deep or shallow— listen. For in some way, they are baring their souls.”
• “Stop trying to protect, to rescue, to judge, to manage the lives around you . . . remember that the lives of others are not your business. They are their business. They are God’s business—even your own life is not your business. It is also God’s business!’ Frederick Buechner”

Sigh,… Memories are stirred up as I look through and re-read passages in these old books.

I love re-visiting each and every one of them.

You might ask how I came upon this Book Series so many years ago and I shall tell you. 🙂

A dear friend of mine gave me a Christmas present of three little, 3 inch snowmen with sticks for arms and she said they are ‘Mitford snowmen.’

I didn’t know what ‘Mitford snowmen’ were and she explained they were from the Mitford Book Series.

I bought the first book in the series, “At Home in Mitford”…a paperback… and I was hooked.

I still have the little snowmen and I put them out every Christmas ….and each time I do,  I think of my friend, Tamea.

Thank you Tamea!

And now, my dear readers….since I have been typing this post, the ‘First Light’ of this day has given way to a full, rosy-glow sunrise…so so pretty. 

‘Every Day is a Fresh Start’…..as it says on the cover of my Daytimer.

A new beginning…after ‘First Light’.

If you are interested, below is a list of Jan Karon’s fictional Mitford Series books….and no, I don’t receive anything for the ‘plug’.

I really have enjoyed these books. 

Have a good and Blessed day my dear friends, no matter what time you start your day. 🙂

Kari 

At Home in Mitford(1994)Hardcover  Paperback  KindleA Light in the Window(1995)Hardcover  Paperback  KindleThese High, Green Hills(1996)Hardcover  Paperback  KindleOut to Canaan(1997)Hardcover  Paperback  KindleA New Song(1999)Hardcover  Paperback  KindleA Common Life(2001)Hardcover  Paperback  KindleIn This Mountain(2002)Hardcover  Paperback  KindleShepherds Abiding(2003)Hardcover  Paperback  KindleLight from Heaven(2005)Hardcover  Paperback  KindleHome to Holly Springs(2007)Hardcover  Paperback  KindleIn the Company of Others(2010)Hardcover  Paperback  KindleSomewhere Safe with Somebody Good(2014)Hardcover  Paperback  KindleCome Rain or Come Shine(2015)Hardcover  Paperback  KindleTo Be Where You Are(2017)Hardcover  Paperback  KindleBathed in Prayer(2018)Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle