I usually awake around 7 am. I guess it's just my internal alarm clock that makes my eyes pop open and I am awake so, I get up and go down to the kitchen and put on the coffee while Glenda sleeps.

Once that is done, I will get back in bed and lean against the wall to read some before starting the day. Glenda is a fitful sleeper so she tends to sleep in most mornings and doesn't wake up until around 8 am or so; and, I will do some quiet reading until the coffee is ready.

It is Autumn now and the nights are getting cooler causing dew to settle on the ground and rooftops. When I was a kid, the dew would freeze overnight, leaving a thin sheet of ice that would crunch and crack as we walked on it. Thanks to global warming it doesn't happen as often, if at all.

Yesterday morning I put on the coffee and sat in bed to read my current book. It's the story of Casanova going back to find the woman he loves who is the one who could resist his charm. Nothing like Nicholas Sparks but a decent read so far.

As I read I leaned against the wall with my back to the window. The morning sunlight flowed in and splashed on the bed. The sun's rays ricocheted off the blue and white blanket and filled the room with light so bright you could feel its heat. The dew that had settled on the roof outside our window coated the tiles leaving a soft sheen.

The roof tiles are a dark gray color and so they quickly began to absorb the heat of the sun. This in turn caused the dew on the tiles to evaporate. If one was to look at the tiles, you could see a thin smoky vapor rising toward the sky as if the swirling shapes were angels ascending toward heaven.

I say this because they appeared almost ghostly and would become invisible after rising a few inches and yet, their continued presence was evident once I turned my back to the window. By now, I had made the first cup of coffee and planned to read until it was gone. By then Glenda would be awake and looking around the room.

When I see that she is awake I will say, "Good morning beautiful." She will laugh and cover her head so I won't see her sleepy-head look. I will then tease her and tell her how much I enjoy looking into her blue eyes; and she giggles like a young girl. Yesterday, however, she slept in and faced the other way. Other mornings, she will roll toward me and lay a hand on my arm as I read while she catches the last few winks before getting up.

As I read the book I noticed some ghostly apparitions floating along the pages of the book from the bottom to the top. The shadows were so feint I could hardly see them and thought I was imagining them. "Dang Sutent," I thought, then it occurred to me it was the steam rising outside the window.

Suddenly, the book became a screen on which I watched the thin, light shadows floating up. I was transfixed for a few minutes. The sunlight warmed my neck and shoulders.

Most mornings, when I first get up and lean back to read, it hurts to move. Even moving my head will bring a sharp pain in my back. Getting comfortable is becoming a pain and it will make me groan as I move around. Anger will then get me moving and damn the pain. This morning, however, the pain was nowhere to be found as those little shadows entertained me.

And it was a peaceful way to start the day.