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Stuart
2 min readJul 4, 2021

I’m the first awake. I’ll be kind and not wake my wife. I smile, contentedly knowing that I can use this moment in the future to leverage when we’re having some fight or disagreement. I turn from my front to my back and in one smooth motion peel the cover over my head and body and with my right hand. As I place it I’ve rotated sufficiently to be able to slide my body from underneath the duvet, and sit upright, creeping my toes back and forth trying to find my slippers, eventually stretching far enough to slide them into. It’s midwinter cold. The heater was relocated to the downstairs office (we’re both working from home now), I’m fully clothed but I still need an extra layer of fleece over my upper body to protect from the crisp chill that the open curtains have let creep in. I pop it over my head and stretch my arms through.

The clock is a palindromic 04.40. It’s no surprise the house is silent. Sometimes there is a sound of waves crashing onto the beach, but the ocean is settled, the waves gentle, and my mind is preoccupied with the impending European Championships quarter-final kicking off 8,000 miles away in 20 minutes. I double-down on smugness as I flick the alarm off 10-minutes before it wakes up the whole house.

The coffee machine was set up the night before: pod in, water tank filled, cup in place. I just need to add milk to the frother and press a couple of buttons. The machines shudder to life, way too loud for their size and use. I give it a few seconds. As the coffee is dripping and the milk frothing, I lift open the bread bin and poke around for the banana bread. I take the chocolate brownie out and unwrap it before realising. I swap for the banana bread, unwrap and cut a generous helping before the coffee is complete. I eat the banana bread, saving time and effort on getting a plate from the cupboard 40cm away from me. Also saves washing. Milk into the coffee glass, rinse the frother, and quick march into the lounge area to power up the TV.

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Stuart

Sport For Development with @football_united + @create_chances | Football coach | Dad