For many years, I woke up every morning when it was still dark to make obento and breakfast for my children, and to see them off to school. My children are spread out in age (年が離れてる), so I had children living at home for 29 years. Those were happy years, but one thing I didn't like was waking up early every morning. I'm not a morning person!
I remember my mother doing the same thing when I was a child. My mother had 4 children, also spread out in age. So she had children living at home for 32 years. It was still dark when I woke up in the morning for school, and my mother was already busy in the kitchen. She made our breakfasts and lunches. She packed a lunch for my father too, and made him a big thermos (ポット) of coffee to take to work with him.
We all left home early in the morning. My father left for work at about 6:30a.m. My sister and I went outside to wait for the school bus at 7:10a.m. Our house was a bit far from the road, so we would walk down the driveway (私道?) to the road, and wait for the bus to come.
The yellow school bus would stop in front of our house, and we would ride the bus for about 30 minutes to the nearest elementary school. Then we all had to get off the bus. The elementary school students went into the school, but the junior high and high school were farther away. (There were only one junior high and one high school in my town.) So we had to wait until another bus came to pick us up and take us to the junior high and high school. Sometimes it was raining, or cold. On those days, the elementary school allowed us to wait in the school auditorium (多目的ホール) until the next bus came.
The whole trip took about 50 minutes each way (片方).
When we reached the junior high or high school, we weren't allowed to enter the school building until the morning bell rang. So again, we stood outside and waited. If it was cold or raining, we could wait in the gymnasium (体育館).
The way home was the same, in reverse.
When the school bus stopped in front of my house in the afternoon, my sister and I rushed off the bus. We checked the mailbox, which was out on the road, so a bit far from the house. We looked to see if our grandmother's car was parked in front of our house. She sometimes visited in the afternoon. If her car was there, we were so happy, and hurried down the driveway to our house. A visit from our grandmother was always exciting!
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At this stage in my life now, I can finally sleep late in the morning. It's so nice! After spending most of my life waking up while it was still dark, it feels like such luxury (贅沢）to wake up when the sun is already shining.
When I wake up now, the first thing I have to do is feed my pets and let them outside. When I open the sliding glass door to let them out into the garden, I see people on the street rushing to work and school. There are elementary school children carrying their school bags, high school students zipping along on their bicycles, men and women dressed for work, rushing along. And I stand at my window, still in my pajamas. I feel so sorry for (かわいそうだと思う、気の毒) everyone rushing around, as I go back to the kitchen to put on some coffee (コーヒーを作る）. But I think, "I had my turn (順番). I took my turn with the busy life. Now it's my turn to slow down a bit."
Are you a morning person