It's Time for Bed

Every time I hear those words, it still makes me cringe.

I remember as a child being sent to bed early. Bed time came before sunset certain times of the year (usually right around a time change). I would always lay awake in bed until I finally became drowsy and fell asleep hours later. In my teens, I especially felt that my bed time was much too strict. No one my age had a bed time of 8pm. Though it did help that most of the time my parents also went to bed when my siblings and I did.

Even today, I still have a repulsion to those words. Anytime I hear "It's time for bed," I am not inspired to go to sleep. Instead it flares the flame of determination inside me to stay up even later. Even when I need to go to sleep and my tired body wants to go to sleep, there is always a little voice in the back of my head that really doesn't want to go to sleep.  Although I know I need sleep, I hardly ever really want to go to sleep. Several of my friends have young children who feel exactly the same way.

Why sleep when there are so many other things I could be doing? There is always just one more of whatever thing I happen to be doing each evening. And my "to do" list is never-ending. If I didn't need to sleep, I could accomplish so much. Or perhaps become a professional procrastinator in the time everyone else slept. I would have the time to do anything and everything I ever wanted – if only I didn't need to sleep.

But if people did not need to sleep, they would never dream. And a life without dreams to pursue would be a very sad place indeed.