Monday Morning Match is a quick post – maybe a quote, inspirational story or idea – intended to spark some motivation inside each of you so your week gets off to a fantastic start on Monday morning.
Waking up the first morning after the long three-day drive down from cold, dreary Ohio, it didn’t take long on my first full day of Spring Break to realize all of the reasons why we work so hard when we are back home.
Hazy skies overhead are made tolerable with a cup of coffee and the sights of the undulating motion of the canal behind the house, quietly preparing for a busy day as the passageway for resident fishermen and tourists from their private docks to the Gulf of Mexico.
As the temperature slowly starts to rise, the pool fountain kicks on, creating the peaceful sounds that will be the soundtrack to an afternoon nap.
Sunblock is applied, to avoid both the immediate pain of a “Hey there Yankee, welcome to Florida” burn and the much-delayed pains of the skin cancer appointments and regret years from now for not applying the SPF when I was younger.
Now the haze has been chased away by the sun as it begins its arch across the Southwest Florida sky, moving from left to right as I gaze over the water at the cars crossing the causeway, partially mesmerized by the seagulls soaring overhead, catching a thermal draft to test their little wings.
A boat trolls by through the “no wake zone” and a friendly reciprocal wave from ship to shore reminds me of the scene at the end of Trading Places.
“Looking good, Billy Ray”
“Feeling good, Louis.”
The palm trees overhead and across the water keep time with the gentle breeze the way a pianist keeps time with a metronome.
The music on the Bluetooth plays songs that encourage you to quietly sing along while tapping your foot on the side of the pool ladder. As each song shuffles on, you remember that time you saw the band in concert, watched their music videos back when MTV actually played music, or what you were doing when you used to play the cassette tape or CD over and over and over again.
Well the good
ol ‘ days
May not return
And the rocks might melt
And the sea may burn
“Learning to Fly – Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
The laid back strolls to the kitchen for a snack are merely a way to pass the time between the passing clouds.
As the book or phone is put back on the table, I replace the reading glasses with sunglasses. The lounge chair is rocked back, signaling that it’s time to finish this post.
These are the days and weeks we envision when we toil on our careers and take care of clients before the sun comes up and long after it goes down. When you put in shifts that are longer than the sun passing from one side of the world to the other, it seems fitting that every once in a while you get to turn off the former and enjoy the latter.
I’m meeting a friend named Tito for an afternoon visit and I’ll re-connect with a few ice cold friends later tonight. They will help remind me of why we all work so hard to build relationships, solve problems and have fun.