June 6th: My first morning

I rolled over in bed at five o'clock this morning, and the sun was already shining. I'm still tired, but I decided to get out of bed anyway. It looks so pretty outside, I have to get out there.

After making a cup of coffee, I put on a light jacket, and went out to the front porch, where I'm now testing this wooden chair to see if it's safe to sit on.

The chair is made entirely from a light wood, and it's in really bad shape. It looks like an animal has been tearing away at the legs, the seat, and the back. There are a lot of pieces missing, but after pushing on it for a while, I decide that it's safe for me to sit in.

After settling in the chair, I look for my cup of coffee, which I had set on the flat top of the wooden railing. Looking at the coffee mug, I realize that Squirrel is standing there, with his front feet on the mug, and his nose over the top of the rim, smelling the coffee.

"Good morning, Squirrel", I say to him, hoping he won't drink my coffee.

"Good morning, Al. Boy, that coffee smells good. You know I could smell it way up there in the trees", he says, pointing way up in the tall treetops of the forest. "And the warm mug sure feels good on my hands on a cool morning like this."

I hate to take the coffee cup away from him, but my hands are cold too, and I'd like to use the mug to warm them. "Wow, it sure is bright out", I say to Squirrel, hoping to distract him as I pick up the mug.

"Oh yes, that's one of the great things about the summers here. The sun is up more than 20 hours every day, and it doesn't even get completely dark when the sun is down. Which is good, because it sure does get dark here in the winter."

I'd like to ask him more, but he's already on his way down the railing. "Yippee! Have a good day", he yells as he runs off. Wow, he has a lot more energy than I do this early in the morning.