Early morning view

I think I've shared before that one of the life changing things about having this group of dogs has been the addition of the habit of drinking a cup of coffee every morning while sitting on the glider on my deck, weather permitting.  This time of year it is dark while I sit there during the week, but on Christmas morning I was there just about the time the sun was rising.  It was not a brilliant, blazing sunrise that morning, just a gradual changing of the light.  The trees have lost most of their leaves, so I have more of a view of the sky now than I do at other times of the year. 

The morning was so peaceful that I felt it the perfect way to begin Christmas Day; sitting quietly absorbing the sunrise.  It was cold, and the steaming coffee was making endless curls into the air.  The dogs were still exploring the yard.  I just sat, enjoying the morning view and being thankful for a small place on God's earth to call my own.