I rise in early morn,
Before the sky begins to dawn,
Buddha greets me with a smile,
He wags his tail and licks my hand,
As I open up the door,
We run with the moon,
We reach the end of our path,
The cliff where we sit together,
And watch the world awaken,
We are the same inside,
The forest is the keeper of our hearts,
We carry it with us always,

We watch dawn begin,
Just he and I,
Then I know it is time,
To begin our day…

When I return,
The coffee is brewed,
And lunches must be made,
We all have our day before us,
Everyone fights for the bathroom,
I hear them pounding on the door,
Yells of frustration as shoes hit the floor…

“Wake up Dad!”
I hear my son say,
“You’re always making us late!
I can’t be late today!”
I smile, knowing it’s always this way…

Yelling and moaning fills the house,
As one after another I hear them shout,
“You’re not wearing my shirt!
Mom! He won’t get out of the bathroom!
Where are my shoes?
Mom, I need Five dollars today!
I need bus money!
Did you make my lunch?”

Finally the door closes,
And they are gone,
Silence echoes off the walls,
Buddha looks at me sympathetically,
I pat his head and smile,
Now the first day of my vacation,
Can finally begin!