The Hinge

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Describe your most ideal day from beginning to end

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I’m a person with simple tastes. I don’t need much to have a good day. My ideal day is made of a handful of small scenes that, put together, feel like enough.

I’m up at 4:30 or 5:00am. The house is quiet. I feed the animals and then sit down to write for an hour or so. Not to impress anyone. Just to start in silence, to pay attention, to clear a little space in my head before the world begins making its demands.

We leave home around 6:30am and return about 8:00am. The walk is the hinge of the day. Sometimes we stop at a café along the way. There’s one on a headland about thirty minutes from home with a great view. Early morning coffee with that kind of horizon restores perspective.

After the walk I write again for a couple of hours. Writing, for me, isn’t pinning things down so much as sketching them — painting with words and leaving room for connections rather than forcing conclusions. It’s restorative. It helps me notice what’s going on under the surface.

Lunch is light and at home. Nothing complicated. That simplicity matters more than I used to think. I’m not trying to build an impressive day, just a steady one.

In the afternoon I read for a while — long enough to slow my mind down. Then I catch up with a friend, either for a chat or for some exercise. Not a crowded calendar. Just one good conversation with enough time in it to be real.

Later I start preparing dinner. I like the idea of working my way through a recipe book — choosing one for the year and slowly making my way through it. Not a Julie & Julia project. Just trying different recipes to surprise my wife at the end of a day’s work. A small act of love, and a bit of play.

At night, something light. Maybe a movie, or some sport depending on what’s on. Then early to bed.

That’s my ideal day from beginning to end. Quiet. Movement. Words. Friendship. A meal shared. Enough rest.

Simple, yes. But it’s a simplicity that feels grounded. And that works for me.