pillow

by

Why Your Sleep May Be Interrupted

Since the new year I have not slept that well, and now I know why.

why your sleep may be interrupted

You would think that with a new year everything restarts, that at midnight on January 1 we hit the reset button … unless you stayed up into the new year and, in that case, the reset happened when your head hit the pillow.

And that is the very culprit of my poor start to 2021 – my pillow.

Pillows are an important part of your sleep technology, according to Sleep Country. But since they are in the business of selling you mattresses and pillows, maybe we should take that idea with a grain of salt.

Yet my pillow is driving me nuts. 

When it’s on the bed, before I climb in, it looks so good, fluffy, lying there inviting me to lay my head down on it. 

But as soon as my head presses into the pillow, it collapses into nothing. 

It’s like in the old cartoons when they were trying to catch a lion. They would dig a hole and then cover it to look like it was just the jungle floor. 

The unsuspecting lion would come along in all his glory and walk confidently over the spot. The covering would collapse and he would fall into the pit. 

When I put my head on my pillow, it’s like my head falls ten stories to the mattress below. At least it is a mattress down there and not a cement floor.

So I’ve been crunching up my pillow to give it some substance. Then, of course, as soon as I move, that soft bolder I’ve created loses its shape and bang, down to the mattress my head falls again. 

As a result, my neck has been a little sore during the night. It’s also causing problems with cutting off circulation to my arms. 

It can be frightening to be half asleep and realize you can’t feel your left arm. And when you fling that half dead arm from under your chest you have to lie still to wait until all those pins and needles leave your appendage before you can move again to a more comfortable position. 

That’s why my condition is serious and it is also causing me to dream more. 

At the beginning of a new year it is good to dream, to dream of what you want to accomplish in the new year, dream about projects you want to start, or things you want to stop. 

But the dreams I’ve been having are disjointed, wild and they don’t make sense. They do nothing but make me restless and cause me to wake up feeling unrested after my night’s sleep.

I’m only a couple of days into the new year and already I’m wondering when this year will be over … and I’m not even thinking about all the COVID issues that are still ahead of us. 

So I’ve made a plan, and I’ve already executed it. This morning I stole a pillow from our spare bedroom. 

We will see if I sleep better tonight. 

Here’s the thing: In the beginning of a new year, we can feel restless for a number of reasons. One way to deal with that restlessness is to take time to seek God and come up with some goals for the year ahead. Consider what God might want to start or stop. You might find you sleep better too. 

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: How can you start the new year off right? Leave your comments and questions below. 

Why not subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this one delivered to your email inbox twice weekly.

by

How Children Develop

I have watched my children grow up and I have enjoyed every stage of their development. Now that my children have reached the stage that they are out on their own, I’m enjoying that part too.

IMG_1648It’s good on a couple of levels. It’s nice to have my house to myself … with my wife, of course. It’s also great to see them stand on their own two feet and makes me proud that, in all those years, our parenting has worked.

Lily and I actually accomplished something! I know parents since Adam and Eve have achieved this marvel, but to each parent it’s truly an amazing revelation.

… I think my parents were in shock for a lot longer than most.

But as much as our children have exercised their wings and been flying on their own, it’s not like they have it all together.

It’s just impossible for them to leave home, set up their own dwelling and be able to have it all together like an adult of, let’s say, late 50’s (very late).

The other night my wife and I were staying with our daughter in her home. In the past three years we have gone from sleeping on the floor when we’ve been there to sleeping on an air mattress.

This time, however, we were upgraded again to a sofa bed. My daughter – I’m so proud of her – we actually slept on something that resembles a real bed in her home!

But as happy as I was to sleep on her new sofa bed, she has to get some pillows!

I didn’t get the soundest of sleeps because the pillow I was provided with was so thin my head was barely lifted above the mattress.

You know how those microfibre blankets are so thin, yet provide a great deal of warmth? Well, it doesn’t work with pillows. Micro-thin pillows are an oxymoron for no pillow at all.

I had the feeling that I was sleeping downhill. Every time I turned in bed I had to fold the pillow in half just so the blood wouldn’t rush to my head. When I changed my sleeping position I kind of woke up in order to keep my melon from slipping off my origami cushion.

I have already reverted to engaging my parental mode by thinking of how I might purchase new pillows for her, which would actually not be for her but for me.

I used to buy her pillows when she lived at home and never thought anything of it. Now that she has her own home, I’m still thinking of making sure she has adequate night gear for her visitors.

It’s like she is in this quasi-state of being all grown up but not fully capable of looking after herself. But as her Dad, I kind of think I’ll always see her a little like that.

I’m going to resist buying that pillow, even if I have to use duct tape to keep that darn pillow folded.

Here’s the thing: As Christians we are loved by God. He loves us just the way we are, but more than that, He loves to see us progress, grow and become more mature in our faith. Though God would like us to have it all together and be just like His Son, He is patient, gracious and loving no matter what stage we are at. God loves you and roots for you to keep on growing in Christ. Let’s keep growing.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What is it about your maturing process that makes you thankful God is patient with you? Leave your comment below.