My house normally wakes up around 5:30 am.
I don't mean it actually opens its eyes,
but it starts to come to life.

The breeze blowing the curtains in my window
gets less calm. My dog starts pacing beside the bed
and watching me with my eyes still closed.
The grass collects more dew, and the fifteen year
old coffee pot gets ready for its next morning shift.
The birds start chirping and the chipmunks come
out of hiding.

My walls, filled with life, blush as the morning
sun splashes against them. My closet gets ready to
see my confused face, the same face I make every
morning since mom stopped dressing me.

My home starts waking to life at about 5:30 am just
as I do. I’m starting to realize that the days I have
left to wake up and greet the birds in my own
home are numbered.

I'm starting to realize that I'm not going to sit up in
bed, my bed, and stare off into space in the
morning.

I won't hear my little brother stirring in his room
a little too early. My mom won't come in to make
sure I'm not still sleeping.

My dad won't drive me to school every day in the
old Ford, with his Moose River Runners mug. I
won't have the time to stare out the fogged
window of the truck.

Instead I'll be the one driving, my eyes glued
to the road a little too much.

My home starts waking up around 5:30 am
so I do too.

CAROLINE WISNIEWSKI is sixteen years old and lives in Belfast, Maine. She got the idea for “Waking Up” when spending time with her family and close friends, and thinking about college. Caroline spends most of her time at the lake, in the studio dancing, and working on her photography.

"Waking Up" by Caroline Wisniewski (Waldo County)