Nocturnal critters

There is, I believe, a chance that in a previous life I was some kind of nocturnal critter. For as long as I can remember, I have had a tendency to wake up about fifteen minuets after I go to bed. Even as a child I just could not get to sleep as early as the other kids did. I can tell you my poor mother tried to get me to sleep at a reasonable hour for years. I cannot remember how old I was when she finally gave up and said that as long as I got up for school she didn’t care how long I stayed up. That was a wise choice on her part because I really could not go to sleep. She understood what I was going through, being a nocturnal creature herself.

The fact that my mother stayed up all night drove my father crazy. He could not understand how anyone could be content staying up all night long. Regrettably, my husband doesn’t understand it either, and there is nothing I can say to help him understand. I don’t understand it myself and to tell you the truth I am so confused about the issue I have no idea where to begin because in typical Betty fashion, I also have tendency to want to get up at 5:00 in the morning if I manage to get to sleep at a reasonable hour. What a conundrum, there are no easy answers here.

The difference between my mother and I on this issue is that I do not have a house full of children that need me during the day and instead of watching TV all night long, I play with the computer or read. I do recall a few times when we did not have a television; she would read the bible or anything else she could get her hands on. There were times in the summer when we would sit outside, just she and I, listen to the night, and watch our little patch of sky waiting for a falling star to wish on. Those have always been the best hours spent with my mother, in the dark of the night, with the blue glow of the television or by the soft light of the stars.

I suppose I should call it a night so I can get up at a reasonable hour, even though I do not feel like going to bed yet. Maybe I’ll go right out.

There is always hope.

Betty