Sweet dreams~!

An older, tired-looking dog wandered into my yard.

I could tell from his collar and well-fed belly that he had a home and was well taken care of.

He calmly came over to me, I gave him a few pats on his head; he then followed me into my house, slowly walked down the hall, curled up in the corner and fell asleep. An hour later, he went to the door, and I let him out.

The next day he was back, greeted me in my yard, walked inside and resumed his spot in the hall and again slept for about an hour.

This continued off and on for several weeks.

Curious, I pinned a note to his collar: ‘I would like to find out who the owner of this wonderful sweet dog is and ask if you are aware that almost every afternoon your dog comes to my house for a nap.’

The next day he arrived for his nap, with a different note pinned to his collar: ‘He lives in a home with 6 children, 2 under the age of 3 – he’s trying to catch up on his sleep..

Can I come with him tomorrow?’

This little story made me smile, looks like I am an “older dog” now myself. I was always a 5-hour sleeper, only at weekends I slept a little longer.  I was one of the early birds, tried to catch a worm…any worm…every day.

I often got up at in the middle of the night and started working. I didn’t sleep well through the night. I was a smoker all my adult life and I used to cough a lot during the night. Of course I never admitted it. “I have a sinus problem” was my standard explanation, followed by “I might have developed allergies”. It sounded better, more ladylike.

I could come up with numerous excuses to explain my cough. But deep inside I knew the truth and I feared it. It started when they added another chemical to the paper, so it would become fire-safe …an oxymoron isn’t it? A fire-safe paper on a burning cigarette. Go figure!

The coughing got worse, most smokers joke about it and call it the “morning hack”, of course that wasn’t it in my case…just sinuses, you know.

I slept a little bit restless right after I quit. A phenomenon other “quitters” experience as well. I had smoking dreams, could even taste the cigarette, it felt so real. I woke up feeling guilty, because I had smoked another one in my dreams.

This didn’t last very long…and then everything changed. I started to sleep, all through the night. I didn’t get up at 4 or 5 am anymore, not at all. I slept until I had to get up.

I sleep like a baby now…well maybe not like a baby…maybe just an like an “older dog”. Taking a break, in form of a nap, during a long and hectic workday, sounds tempting. Now I just have to find a neighbors house, where I can go and wouldn’t be found for a couple of hours.

Tempting indeed!

To Sleep, Perchance to Dream

Sleep is one-third of our lives: write a post about it. Do you love naps? Have trouble falling alseep? Wish you could remember your dreams? Remember something especially vivid? Snuggle under a blanket, or throw the windows wide open? Meditate on sleep.