Sleep, oh the bliss of this glorious thought! It's odd how the meaning and value of sleep changes during a person's lifetime......During the first years of life (not that I remember them well) sleep dominates the daily schedule. *I used to stand up in my crib and say, "Mommy I'm waking!" just to inform my parents of the break in my sleep-enduced coma.
...As a toddler, napping is still part of the routine, but most kids are against it. *I of course, went against the norm.
...As a child goes to school, sleeping is replaced with recess; what a trade-off! At this phase, kids will do anything to stay in on the action instead of going to sleep. *My brother was much more prone to this way of life than I. His energy seemed to be boundless, unless we were in the car. To this day, Josh is asleep before we even cross the Ohio border.
...Somehow there is a shift from "You can't make me sleep!" to "You can't make me wake up!" This typically happens in teenage years. *A few weeks ago I was taking care of some kids for friends. Getting one of them up in the morning was much harder than expected; in the end, I used the method of surprise. Her brothers ambushed her. It wasn't the most pleasant, but it was very effective.
...In college, sleep was a treasure. My roommate Amy and I knew that it wasn't even worth it to attempt conversation in under 30 minutes after waking up. We also knew the joys of sleep; that weird yet blissful sound one makes right before drifting off. Sleep~We didn't need much of it, but the little we had was priceless.
...Now I find that I've come full circle; I'M IN DIRE NEED OF SLEEP!!! Maybe I need rest instead. Is it the age 25? Is it having to leave for work before dawn? Is it the stress of life?
I long for sleep. I crave it. I treasure it. It is precious to me. It can also be my downfall...
And now I wonder; what have I missed while I was sleeping? And by this I am talking about the number of times I go through the motions of life sleeping with my eyes open. I just try to get through the day. Try to make it pass quickly. Try to speed it up. I miss conversations and interactions that could be beneficial. Could be significant. Could be eternally significant. I don't want to sleep any longer. Life is a blip. I can't afford to miss what God is doing and saying while I was sleeping.
(Thanks to Ryan Toupin for falling asleep and drooling so that this post could be enhanced!)
2 comments:
Roommate, I'm laughing out loud at the memory of your falling-asleep sound :)
thanks for the reminder to wake up and LIVE.
When I was in high school my dad would flip my light switch on and off really fast until I got out of bed. I'm glad you can remind me to "wake up" in a much kindler, gentler, less brain-assaulting fashion. Thanks, Steph!
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