Let Her Sleep, For When She Wakes She Will Move Mountains

All of you who are in a relationship with your bed, raise your hand. Ah yes, I can tell that’s pretty much everyone who reads this blog. And when I say everyone, I mean the two people who actually take the time to read my blog. But that’s not the point. My point is that we all like to sleep. But I’m speaking about that special relationship we all have with sleep: naps. Yes, sinking into your bed after a long day is one of the best feelings in the world. But what about sinking into your bed half way through the day? Or any time during the day? Here we have the benefits of naps. I can fall asleep pretty much anywhere. True experiences include: the kitchen table, the living room floor (but not Glenwood’s floor…I don’t think I’ll ever be able to even sit on that nasty excuse for a carpet), the desks in the library, class (pretty much every day), the mother’s room on the fourth floor of the library, the car, the list goes on. Naps, whether on accident or on purpose, are just a part of my daily schedule now. If you are not a professional napper, then here’s some things you need to know about me and all those other crazy nappers out there:

Any time of the day is the perfect time for a nap. You got up at 7, but a twenty minute nap at 8:15 is perfectly fine. After lunch nap? Of course. What about a pre-dinner nap? I think yes. I’ll even support those fifteen minute naps at 10:30, only to go to bed at 11:30.

Any length of time is perfect for a nap. Five minutes, ten, thirteen, thirty, two hours! I’ve done them all. Just make sure you set an alarm or you might wake up and have no idea what day it is or what year or what planet you’re on.

Setting an alarm means nothing. Just because I put an alarm on for fourteen minutes doesn’t mean I’m going to get up in fourteen minutes. I’ll most likely wake up, shut off the alarm, and then go to sleep for another forty-five. I’ll only get up from the bed during that short break to eat something.

SUNDAYS. Every napper’s favorite day. Yes, as a lover of sleep, it is difficult to get up for my 9:00 church, but getting out at 12 means a thirty minute two hour nap.

If I’ve planned a nap, I’ll make an excuse to get out of things to make sure I get in that nap. “Yeah, sorry, I can only study at the library for an hour or two because I need to get ready before we party Friday night.” AKA “I’ve been planning my Friday nap all week, and studying is not going to get in the way.” Sometimes you just gotta politely excuse yourself from social situations to take your planned nap. 

During freshman year, my friends always made fun of me because I always told them I needed a “five-minute break” in between Cannon dinners and mid-week “parties.” At first these five-minute breaks were to touchup my makeup. By the end of the year, they evolved to lying on my bed for five minutes. 

Another freshman year story: everyone hates being in their actual room, so I always was studying, sleeping, eating, etc. in room 3221 (Megan and Faith’s room). A few times I went to my room to grab something or make a call to take a break from studying. Thirty minutes later, my friends asked me what took me so long. “I accidentally fell asleep.”

Napping with friends? Perfectly acceptable. Something about their giant, comfy blankets just bring out the inner sleeper within me. Freshman example once again: That giant duvet in room 3217 (Lindsay’s room) on that extra-long twin bed…best blanket for napping. Third-wheeling napping? Yes. I think that deserves a story: one time my friends and I spent the beautiful spring day doing homework (but mostly napping) outside on the grass. All of a sudden, I wake up, and only Faith and Logan are left. I was not in the mood to third-wheel, so I sleepily hurried inside and ran into someone because I was still opening up my crusted eyes.

Don’t talk to me five minutes after I wake up from a nap. I’ll either be babbling gibberish or start talking about my crazy dream. Don’t wake me up from a nap either. I’ll pretend it’s fine, but it’s actually not. I planned for a forty minute nap, so thirty-two minutes is just not gonna cut it.

I’ve texted this to my mom multiple times: “Mama, I want to call you sometime today. I already took my nap, but let me know when you’re done with your nap after church, so I can call you.”

I no longer believe this lie, but I still tell it to myself: “I’ll just place my head on this conveniently placed pillow for only two minutes.”

I’ve missed important calls and texts because of my napping. Sleep > social life

 “You look really tired.” Yeah, it’s because I missed my nap today. I believe that naps actually do help me in productivity. As long as those naps don’t go over fifteen-twenty minutes.

One of my greatest disappointments is that I don’t live in a country where siestas are an official thing. But I still celebrate them anyway.

So many times I’ve just stood there in the living room, slowly sinked to the floor, and then have fallen asleep. It seems like that’s when people love knocking on our family’s door. Please excuse my groggy talking and smeared make up.

Sometimes the only thing that gets me out of bed in the morning is the realization that I'll get to nap later that afternoon and that I won't have to wait until that night to finally sleep.

Just because I took an hour and a half nap doesn’t mean I’m not going to change my night sleeping schedule. I was planning on sleeping in and taking a nap. Despite my love for sleeping, I still end up staying awake late…

Some people believe they can’t take a nap if all their laundry is on their bed. This is a lie. It’s clean, so you might as well sleep on top of it or use it as a blanket. It’s a bonus if those clothes are fresh out of the drier and are nice and warm.

And finally, I thought you all should know that I took a nap halfway through writing this.