Sleep

The other morning I was in bed sleeping, exhausted after a rough night with my son Lance. Suddenly, I had the wind knocked out of me as cold water gushed down my back. I was up in a flash only to find my 2-year-old Eden standing by the bed, holding up an empty glass.

“Here go, Mommy!” she exclaimed brightly. I lifted the soaking blankets off of me and got up. My chance at sleep was clearly over.

I have heard of people who are able to charge ahead with thrusters on full, day after day, with only four to six hours of sleep a night. I am not one of those people. In fact, I’d like to know how they do it! I seem to require a lot of sleep. If I slept as long as I wanted each night, it would probably be somewhere around nine to ten hours a night.

My need for sleep usually lessens during summer, especially when the days are extremely short. I suppose that the sun and light give me more energy. Likewise, during winter is when I need the most sleep. I could sleep ten hours and still nap during the afternoon if I had the opportunity!

Some people might say that sleeping is a way to waste your life. I suppose that is true to an extent. I wouldn’t want to sleep and miss something important. But I also wonder if sleeping means I’ll have a longer life. Perhaps I’m adding years to my life by staying rested when I can. Certainly getting enough sleep will keep me healthy. If it means I feel better, think better, and achieve better things during my days, I don’t think a little more sleep is a waste of time at all. Now, if only my kids would agree!