Every day at 6:00 the alarm goes off. Most days I'm already up laying awake in bed saying hello to my father. Today was chilly, my nose was cold before my feet hit the wood floor. Grab a grubby sweater, wool socks and a pony tail holder.

The house is dark, still, and intensely quiet. I'm careful to keep all the lights off to keep the donkey's from braying. I can hear the horses making their way through the tall grass to the barn from the open bedroom windows. Their daily march, nose to tail, groggily tailgating to the barn in complete darkness.

I load the grain buckets into the wheelbarrow and make my way on the gravel path to the barn. I can't see a thing. The sound of gravel crunching under my wheelbarrow tire lets me know I'm on the path.

Duck before entering the barn, a large wolf spider has set up house in the door frame corner for several months. As I open the barn door my hungry horses are waiting patiently, nicking softly. They know me, they no my voice, they know my routine, they know my style and we have a rhythm.

As I hitch and stall the horses I can make out a silhouette of a herd of deer in the foggy twilight on the pasture hill. The horses eat contentedly as I sit with Blaze the barn cat in a pitch back barn. My mind goes through the daily to do list, pray, plan and just listen.

I can see a glow coming from the house. Mr. Johnson has accepted the reality of his alarm clock and gotten up. The stars are so bright and I remember to look for Jupiter because Shannon told me it would be bright this week. Then the first hint of pink appears on the horizon and the stars began to fade and the moon gradually disappears in the morning light.

The horses are done eating because Beau kicks his bucket and snorts, PI stretches out and bows.

How could I ever think God didn't have a plan for me? He knows the plans he has for me to prosper and not harm me, to give me hope and a future.