One More Day

“Tomorrow we’ll discover what our God in Heaven has in store; one more dawn, one more day, one day more!”  These words are sung in the finale of acts one and two in the musical Les Miserables and they provide the inspiration for the title of this blog.

Just like in the song, a new dawn and a new day bring with them hope; hope for a brighter day, a day filled with challenges and opportunities and yet endless possibilities. Even if the day turns out to be one of the darkest and saddest days, we can be comforted that we will never have another day exactly like that one again and that with a new dawn comes fresh hope. No two days will ever be the same so make the most of each one you are faced with, you will never get the same opportunity again.

As 2010 comes to an end we look forward to a new dawn, a new day, a new year and a new decade. What it will bring, no one can predict, but how we deal with what lies ahead is very much within our control.

A new year brings with it new resolutions to do better than the year before but they are often broken before the month has ended. I have never been very good at keeping to the resolutions I made but inspired by the thought that One More Dawn brings with it a chance to start each day afresh, I am going to try and stick to keeping short term goals, that can be appraised on a daily basis and if necessary re-evaluated.  I have always wanted to write a book and even started a creative writing course once – but never completed it. I often write reviews for a classical music website and it was from this, along with the encouragement of my dear friend Jillian and her family that I thought I would try my hand at writing a blog. In a blog I can write about the various places I travel to, the concerts and plays I attend and the books I read, but I can also just pause to savour the treasured moments that are often passed by too quickly.

In my former job I worked shifts and would often be driving to work at dawn. I don’t know if you have experienced being awake at that time of day but there is something quite magical about it. The sky may just be starting to lighten and the air seems fresher as though untainted by the noise and pollution of traffic that will come later. The birds are awake and calling to each other – the dawn chorus is quite a remarkable sound. The grass may be damp with dew and spiders’ webs in the hedges look like they have been sprinkled with diamonds. There may be slight mist patches which add to the magical feel of the morning but these will disappear as the sun shows its face. Did you know that Dawn is actually the beginning of Twilight and occurs whilst the sun is still below the horizon?

 The sunrise itself is often quite a sight to behold as the sky around it turns pink and then red and everything in its path is bathed in a glorious warm light. Nature really does have such an incredible beauty and it seems a shame that while all this is going on we are often still asleep, or rushing around getting ready and so miss the wondrous and inspirational daily ritual that starts a new day.

“Listen to the Exhortation of the Dawn! Look to this day! For it is life, the very life of life. In its brief course lie all the verities and realities of your existence. The bliss of growth, the glory of action, the splendour of beauty; for yesterday is but a dream, and tomorrow is only a vision; But today well lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness, and every tomorrow a vision of hope. Look well therefore to this day! Such is the salutation of the dawn!”

 Kalidasa quotes (Indian Sanskrit poet and dramatist, 5th century AD)

Happy New Dawn, Happy New Year!