I chatter to the cat as the clock hits 7:00, the magic waking hour my daughter must observe during the school week. “Up, up… your shorts and shirt are right here with a sweatshirt.”
There is no movement from the bed. The covers remain completely still.
“Up… you need to grab something to eat before you run.” She has started training for the spring 5K run which will happen the first day of her spring ballet performance weekend. Busy, busy, busy!
Still no movement.

I have a fabulous idea. I run downstairs and return with the new U2 album. Into the cd player it goes. This will wake the little bear. The music begins. I pull back the covers “up!” U2 plays loudly (as loudly as I feel comfortable playing so early in the morning) and she stretches. She grabs her clothes and pulls them beneath the covers with her (as if it is cold) “I want to warm my clothes for just a minute.”
I feed the cat, then run downstairs to assemble my own breakfast and get the bags ready to go. Back upstairs I find her… still under the covers.
“Up!! It is time to go. You are going to be late.”
Fortunately the slowest part of her mornings involve the bed. Once she is out, she can be ready within moments. She makes her way downstairs, grabs a drink, and is ready to pull on her shoes and go. I throw her lemon poppy seed muffin into her bag, fill her water bottle, turn off the album to take to work with me, and we are out the door.
“Did you like U2?” I asked her as we walked out the door and began our journey to the school.
“No, it’s rock and roll. Why do all the songs have to be so loud.”
I just smile. How much longer will she think such thoughts. How many more years will pass before I am attempting to figure out how she can listen to whatever it is she is enjoying. But mostly, I put the U2 in the player simply because I knew she would not spend an hour listening, singing, and dancing to it. I knew that No Line on the Horizon would get the child out of bed!