Saturday, September 25, 2010

Sleep on it

Sleep is such a fascinating concept.

It's the process of shutting down our bodies for a time in order to keep forging ahead. To completely leave yourself wide open to danger and bodily harm. To close your eyes and go to a whole other realm.

I think of that a lot when I am traveling, especially. Watching one sleep on the bus and on planes and at the airport. Drooling mouths opened wide, sleeping in chairs and stretched out on the floor at their gate waiting for their next flight. It feels so vulnerable.

While sleeping on the beach a couple of weeks ago, the murmur of voices lulled me to sleep. Upon waking, I was surprised to find so many people around me had packed up and left while I slept. They packed up their coolers and closed down their umbrellas while I laid there in a different dimension. And it IS another dimension. It really is a whole other realm of being.

We dream in this state. It's where we ponder and wonder and figure things out.

We go to sleep with questions and we wake up with answers.

We sleep on it
... to renew and relive and revive.

It is warm out tonight. I can hear the neighbor's chatting it up in their backyard with their friends and family. Gales of laughter. Lots of conversation. Clinking glasses. I imagine their faces glowing from the candle light and the twinkling lights they have set up. I want to be outside, too. I want to sit out under the stars of my backyard and listen to the crickets and enjoy this beautiful warm evening as well.

But it is nearly 10:30 and I will be waking up at 5:00 to run 14 miles in beautiful San Francisco. I'll start at the north end of the Golden Gate Bridge early tomorrow morning and finishing there as well. It's going to be a great morning!

So it is off to bed I go.

I will dream of running. I always do before a long run. I sleep on it... so to speak. And, it helps me on my actual run. I really believe it helps.

Good night.

3 comments:

danny said...

Have a great run Shawn and yes! Sleep is a fascinating subject...did you know cats prefer to sleep in hollows or secluded places so they're less vulnerable, and the markings above their eyes look like open 'eyes' when they're sleeping...I always imagine myself in a secluded tree fort or behind a waterfall and then I find it much easier to fall asleep, and dream...

Rayne said...

I was just going to write that I hope you have a great run, but, I realized that you would have run it already. I hope it went well.
I have always found it kind of cool, almost like a magic trick, when I wake up and find so many things have happened about me while I was asleep.

doodlegirl said...

Dan! My cat Mollie loves to sleep in the hollows between my legs at night. WOW! Thanks for giving me that catipedia. ;O) (So dorky, but i tried).

Rayne! So lovely to see you over here. It's been a long while since you sauntered over to my world. ;O)
BTW.. my run went great by the way! Thanks for visiting and "getting" the magic trick of sleep!