What’s the one thing you do in the morning that sets the tone for the rest of your day?
From drinking a hot cup of masala tea and reading the newspaper to meditating and going out for a walk, we all have various morning rituals that we follow day in and day out before it’s time to go to work. But there is usually that one thing that often sets the tone for the rest of the day and that you would hate to miss or skip because of any reason whatsoever. The Week asked some people what they considered to be their most important morning ritual. 

Sudarshan Dhungana
Something I have to do every single morning before I step out of the house is shave. I do this even on Saturdays and on days when I don’t have anywhere to go because I feel uncomfortable and grubby with growing out facial hair. It’s an integral part of my morning routine and it makes me feel fresh and ready to get on with my day. Because I do it so often, I’ve mastered the technique of shaving within five to seven minutes. I generally shave just before I head out for work – after I finish getting ready. But this act is something that’s an integral part of my morning routine. 

Babita Pokharel
My day starts with a cup of tea. My family has always been big on tea so growing up I naturally picked up their habit of drinking loads of tea – multiple cups every single day – and I follow it religiously to this day. I drink a glass of lukewarm water as soon as I wake up and then, after freshening up, I make myself a cup of milk tea, enjoy it either while reading the newspaper or scrolling through my social media feed and only then move on to do other things. I’m also very particular about the taste, flavor and texture of the tea so I generally don’t like tea made by anyone other than myself.

Prazieta Acharya
My morning routine is as basic as it gets. I get up, freshen up and eat breakfast. One particular thing that I simply can’t miss out on is having a warm cup of hot lemon. That one single cup is very important to set the day right, otherwise I’m left with a slightly bloated, uncomfortable feeling throughout the day. After having a light breakfast, I go about following a simple skincare ritual. And lastly, as I’m on leave for now, I take extra care to keep my room and home as clean as possible and it’s nice that I don’t have to rush out the door without making my bed because I’m late for college.

Aashish Ghimire
Usually when I wake up in the morning, I go to the rooftop and enjoy the foggy morning view. I sit there quietly for about 15 minutes thinking about life and what I can do to make my time here on earth worth it. The touch of fresh air and the golden sunrays feel divine. Every morning gives me the hope of new opportunity. This silent meditation makes me feel like I’m in the middle of a forest, even though I live in a city that comes to life at the break of dawn. When I don’t do it, my head feels heavy all day and I feel out of place. I’m also quite unsettled and nervy when I haven’t had those 15 minutes of bliss so I make sure I never skip this ritual.

Aakriti Kapali
I have been following this very specific skin moisturizing routine ever since I was a child, and I still do it every single day. After I’m done washing my face and patting it dry, I absolutely have to apply some Nivea Soft. This cream makes my skin bouncy and radiant and I feel fresh. I know it sounds silly but I feel the smell gives me the energy to get things done. I do this without fail every day and I have never ever not given my skin the pampering it needs and deserves in the morning. I feel taking care of myself like this makes me better able to face the challenges of the day. 

Sulov Khadka
Almost immediately after I get up, I grab my phone and scroll through Instagram like it’s the morning newspaper. Most of the time, I’ve already seen all the posts the night before, but still I have this need to scroll through the feed and catch up on anything new or old. After that, I go over to Reddit and fill up on my daily dose of the wacky side of the internet. Sometimes, I spend hours doing that. I know they say social media first thing in the morning is bad but I find it gets me going. Between all that, it’s quite amazing that I manage to freshen up and get ready for the day too.  

 
• meditating
 
• tea
 
• newspaper
 
• morning_rituals