Recently, I had the wonderful opportunity to stay at the Hay-Adams Hotel, “where nothing is overlooked but the White House,” for one night in Washington, D.C. It was pretty fancy and directly across the street from St. John’s Episcopal Church, Lafayette Square, which is nicknamed the “Church of the Presidents” because every sitting President since James Madison has worshiped there at least once. Pew 54 is reserved for the President’s use whenever in attendance.

But let’s move on to something that’s more important than historical facts, which is breakfast. That was pretty fancy, too, and included not only delicious food but also a real newspaper that I held in my hands. Although it seemed rather old fashioned in the internet age, my favorite part of the meal was feasting on those printed words.

So this week’s haiku theme is about morning rituals. How do you actually start your morning? How do you wish a new day could begin? Do all of those things change when you’re on vacation or a business trip? Pick something like that to write a verse about, using five syllables in the first line, seven syllables in the second line, and five syllables in the third line. Here’s what came to mind for me:

The Washington Post
made the morning and my prayers
more thoughtful. Amen.