How Do You Perk Up Your P.M.?

I’m a morning person. While I have as difficult time as the next person getting out of bed in the mornings, it’s a mixed bag for me. I lie there for a few minutes enjoying the sweetness of slumber, but I can’t linger between the sheets too long because I’m anticipating much more than I’m forsaking.

Each morning I look forward to my first glimpse of another awesome Arizona sky, my walk in the brisk Arizona air, my daily phone call to my good friend in Texas while I put in the miles, time on the back porch with my doggies while we stretch our limbs and our paws, that first huge mug of coffee, and especially my time with God and His Word. I LOVE the mornings. I savor every last minute and every last drop.

And I have energy in the morning. Once I do throw of the covers, I’m invigorated with the anticipation of the day. I manage to walk 5+ miles, tidy the house, get some work done, take care of the dogs, and usually minister to others in some way. I pour a lot into my mornings because they start early and I’m brimming with energy.

But as the minutes tick away and I check off each of the rituals on my morning list, I never fail to be dismayed when I glance at the clock and see that, while I was busy enjoying my morning, it slipped away and turned to noon. While I’m always thankful for an opportunity to eat another meal, I hate high noon. In fact, I don’t even so much like the food we normally eat at the noon hour.

Noon brings lunch and lunch brings on my afternoon slump. I know, I know. Some of you are probably questioning what I eat for lunch. Surely that is the culprit inflicting my daily slump. But while I’ll admit that an especially heavy meal does occasionally send me over the edge, I really try to steer clear of heavy starches, fats, and sweets at lunch. And I try not to eat heavy lunches. So, while my lunch may occasionally be the instigator of my afternoon slump, that’s not generally the case.

I’m just productive in the morning and not so much in the afternoon. To be honest, I think I’m a little depressed in the afternoon, as though I’m mourning the loss of morning…it’s freshness, newness, and sweetness.

But alas, I have work to do in the afternoon hours. I’m sure you do too. As much as I’d love to sleep these hours away, making up for the early hour at which I arose, I need to keep plugging away as the day transitions from morning to evening.

So what do you do to overcome the afternoon slump? Do you struggle with this same predicament? Today, I lay down any temptation to play the expert. I don’t have the answers on this one, even though I usually manage to struggle on through one way or the other, and I even occasionally have a very productive afternoon. Nope, today I’m posing the question and offering no solutions.

I’m writing this on Tuesday afternoon…trying to force my way through my daily down time until I eventually pick up the pace. So as soon as I set this baby up to post on Wednesday, I’m heading for the kitchen to brew a fresh pot of coffee.

Meanwhile, I’d love it if you could offer me a few of your solutions for perking up your p.m.!