Gentle Night

Your body’s natural medicine is sleep; but we fight it even though its good for you.  When you’re sick you sleep more; when you work too much you get sick and then you sleep even more. Your body is constantly adjusting to your activities with more sleep.  Like a cell phone before the contract expires; our battery memory fades overtime so we need longer time recharging.  Word to the wise, keep charging that battery – if it fades completely you don’t get a new one.

Someone is always trying to stop you from sleeping.  When kids are little their parents have them on a schedule, so God forbid they go to sleep before their designated time.  We had three children in 12 months, so Diane made them sleep all at once even though they each were different.  But can you imagine dealing with three toddlers all waking and nodding off at different times?   I’d still feel bad, however, when one of them would nod off in the van and get blasted by a loud nursery rhyme.  No wonder they hate Barney now.  I feel you should sleep whenever you want; especially when you’re hosting a party.  Most people follow the good host rule and stay up until the last guest leaves; not me.  I don’t care if the house is filled with serial killers, when I’m tired, I’m heading to bed.   The problem with some guests is they don’t want to leave.  If you’re polite and say “goodnight” they all start yelling to make you stay up with them.  Screw that, I’m doing “The Fade” and heading to bed without saying goodnight.

People use different sleep tactics.   I have a “Hill” policy where I can sense the top of the hill way out on the horizon, so I go to bed before I reach it. Diane, on the other hand has the “Thelma and Louise” tact which is driving at full throttle until the car flies off the cliff.   She’ll be up singing and laughing and then all of a sudden she’s no where to be found.  At the same time she’s ashamed when I sleep in public, although I could care less.  When we first started dating she was appalled I’d sleep in church.  A little secret, It’s the best place for sleeping; everyone’s quiet, the music is soft, people are whispering.  Find the pew behind the pillar and take a nap.  Sleeping in public, however,  can be treacherous.  My brother Mark, Mike Whalen, and I were once driving up I-95 coming back from South Carolina. Around 2:00 AM I woke up for some odd reason only to see the toll booth in Baltimore coming at us at full tilt.  I looked over, Whalen is asleep in the middle and Mark is slumped over at the wheel going 85 MPH.  Trust me, I didn’t sing the Barney song.

Some people sleep too much, some people sleep not enough.  I use to run on 5 hours every night for the longest time and that was enough for me.  Now I’d love to sleep past 6:30 AM, which never happens.  Long story short, you need to sleep however and whatever work’s best for you personally.  Don’t let anyone manage your sleep; sleep as long and short as you like; unless it’s permanent sleep.  Permanent sleep is bad and should be avoided at all costs, so take to heart Dylan Thomas’ famous words:  Do not go gentle into that good night.  Slainte