I have never been a morning person, but I must admit that on most days I am grateful to be awake.
Every morning we recite Shirat HaYam, the song that the Israelites sang upon reaching the other side of the Sea of Reeds (Exodus 15:1):
אָשִׁירָה לַיהוָה כִּי-גָאֹה גָּאָה, סוּס וְרֹכְבוֹ רָמָה בַיָּם.
Ashira ladonai ki ga-oh ga-ah, sus verokhevo ramah vayam.
I will sing to God, for He has triumphed gloriously; the horse and its rider He has thrown into the sea.
The point is one of gratitude for redemption; every morning we acknowledge the story of the parting of the sea, as if we have just crossed it ourselves. And to our ancestors, making it through the night was not unlike crossing the sea; redemption comes every morning.
There are those of us today who might see redemption as surviving the day rather than the night, so one might just as easily recite Shirat HaYam in the evening. Which would you prefer?
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