Mississippi John Hurt

Blue light's best to wake in, but you've got to stay in bed for a few minutes and have your brain all to yourself before it's taken over by consciousness.

Some people live their lives like this, in a state of perpetual waking. I've known one personally and the other who comes to mind is Mississippi John Hurt, who I know only through the sound of his voice. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39RBm4tH9cA 

(Sorry for the little commercial).

A friend of mine was once given a ride by Mississippi Fred McDowell. My friend was hitchiking with a friend, got stranded somewhere near Memphis. It was the early 1970's, hippie time, and my friend had the kind of long blond hair that motorists in that part of the world didn't cotton to. Hours went by, hundreds of car passed, no ride. Tired, rejected, bummed, they decided to walk into the next town.

At a gas station there, my friend, a bluesman himself, remembered he'd heard that Fred McDowell lived near Memphis. He went into a phone booth and looked through the directory, found a Fred McDowell listed, put a quarter into the slot and dialed the number. Fred McDowell answered. My friend explained the situation. About a half hour later, Fred McDowell drove up to the station, gave the boys a ride to his house, a meal, then drove them 30 miles to a highway he promised would be more welcoming.  

When I wake in blue light I'm more apt to be grateful for the great life I've had, even if it ended tomorrow, and to trust that the things that didn't come true were things that weren't good for me in the first place. I'd like to think I could stay there forever, but then the light changes, gets brighter, and I take myself out of bed like a farmer.