By Urmila Devi Dasi
I look back on my life as a small child. Each morning my father would rise by 5:00 A.M. and wake me soon afterwards. Or did I wake spontaneously just to be with him? I would play in his office in our home while he showered. When I was very young we would play together, each of us with a doll. His doll told me stories of his life and taught me lessons of ethics and morality. As I got older, the play became a time to talk of the important things in our lives. My father squeezed fresh orange juice, made our breakfast, and forged our friendship. He made the early morning a time of peace, beauty, love, friendship, and understanding. Mentally traveling forward, I remember sitting in a temple president's office so many years later. "I'd like to live here and dedicate myself to serving Krsna." "We wake up early in the morning," he says. "Very early. Can you do that?" I smile. "I've done that all my life."