There is no hope for a civilization which starts each day to the sound of an alarm clock. ~Author Unknown
I hate alarm clocks. I hate the sudden loud blaring that makes you jump when you’re dead asleep. The surge of adrenaline that makes you bounce out of bed, heart rate pumping like there was a fire going on, and the minuscule thought that you overslept messing up your first morning thoughts. I think it’s a cruel jump start to your brain, and although I don’t know if there is any science based research that says it’s a bad way to wake up, I’m sure it can’t be the best way to wake up. So I devised my own way to wake up peacefully.
The last time I was looking for an alarm clock I became very picky about the features. I wanted something with different alarm sounds, something a little more peaceful. I happily ended up with an iPod dock clock that had nature sounds built into it. For the longest time I simply allowed myself to wake up to the sounds of a river and bird calls, and it was incredibly serene. No loud noise or shock treatment to my sleepy mind. Now, I will admit that I’m a very light sleeper, so waking up to gentle nature sounds was easy for me. Yet, it really was a nice way to wake up.
I later expanded my choice of sounds when I decided to make a playlist on my iPod to wake me up daily. I went through all my songs to find the perfect playlist to inspire my day and make it a tranquil way to wake up, get dressed, and start my morning. I wanted the playlist to start out serenely and gently become a bit louder and inspiring to me. I wanted to listen to it and feel good about the on coming day no matter how crappy it seemed to be. I wanted it to speak to me on different levels. So I devised the following playlist. I update it periodically as I find more songs that fit, so it’s always a work in progress. I hope you enjoy it. As for the first track, I swear the only thing I’m missing is to somehow get my curtains to open by themselves and let the morning sunshine in to really make it perfect. I’ll work on that a bit.
Peer Gynt, Suite No. 1 , Op. 46, Morning
Here Comes the Sun – The Beatles
Good Day Sunshine – The Beatles
A Beautiful Morning – The Rascals
Rainbow -G. Love & Jack Johnson
Somewhere Over the Rainbow / What a Beautiful World -Isreal Kamakawiwo’ole
Good Morning After All – Collective Soul
Ob la di, Ob la da – The Beatles
Heaven is Already Here – Collective Soul
Best Day of My Life – American Authors
My Soul Happiness 