I am a Steller Sea Lion

It’s 7am. It’s 7am on a Saturday and I’m not a morning person. I’m sure I whined and fussed more times growing up than my mom cares to admit. She had the unfortunate job of waking “the beast” most mornings. I remember a lot of temper tantrums those days as she took me to school. Why did school have to start so early?

Now it’s my poor husband. He dubbed me “Wildebeest” for that reason. He knows how I feel when my alarm sounds every day for work. After all, he has suffered through enough instances of hitting the snooze five times or short-tempered moments to have learned by now. He knows better than to poke the animal before 10am.  

So, Wildebeest was my nickname until we took a trip to Alaska and saw Steller Sea Lions for the first time. The Steller Sea Lion is a species of sea lion in the northern Pacific. It is also the largest species of sea lion. Heavy, bulbous creatures that can grow to eleven feet with bear-like heads. Ever heard the phrase “never wake a sleeping bear?”

We were on a whale watching excursion, cruising around the icy blue waters near Juneau, Alaska when we came upon an island. As the boat rounded the peninsula, we heard the collective groaning first. Deep, guttural grunts which echoed through the narrow strait. Then we saw them. Hundreds of reddish-brown blobs littered across the rocky shoreline. As the boat got closer, we could see them all lined up doing their Steller Sea Lion thing. Some were sun-bathing, some were snoozing in a pile, some were waddling around or splashing in the water. Then there were those special Steller Sea Lions, the ones who were picking fights with each other and making a big fuss.

One of these special Seal Lions appeared in the front and I snapped a picture. He would stomp his flippers upon the rocks and snap any other Seal Lion who approached him, letting out what I can only describe as a sea-lion-roar. My husband turned to me in that moment and stated with absolute certainty,

“You are a Steller Sea Lion.”

I punched him in the arm and laughed about it, but I knew he was right. I could relate to that grumpy guy on so many levels. Maybe he is my spirit animal.

So back to 7am on a Saturday. I have been getting up every Saturday at 7am for nearly a year now. The thing is, I don’t groan when the alarm goes off. I don’t hit snooze five times. There is no mental pep talk that occurs as I sit on the mattress in a state of delirium, willing myself to rise and start my day. I don’t even let out a loud Steller-Sea-Lion-Roar. I just get up.

I’ve only been able to embrace the morning for one reason — for writing. My writing group meets on Saturday mornings at the library and I’ve committed myself to attend. This promise to myself to focus on my craft and take that special time is what gets me out of bed early every Saturday.

So now, I look forward to 7am on Saturday. I will leave the Steller Sea Lion to Sunday through Friday.