In Praise of My Bed
by Meredith Holmes
At last I can be with you!
The grinding hours
since I left your side!
The labor of being fully human,
working my opposable thumb,
talking, and walking upright.
(the rest of the poem is here)
As you can see from the picture, even those who don't have opposable thumbs and walk upright love the embrace of the bed.
It's been an exhausting week. At some point yesterday when it was feeling like the endless week from you-know-where, I actually thought it was Wednesday. Time passed in an amazing rush when my students corrected me and said, "No, tomorrow is Friday."
How time can feel slow or fast and yet pass by at the same measured rate has always fascinated me. Years for a little kid are a gigantic fraction of their total life, and so years are huge. The older we get, the smaller the fraction of our life for a year, and the faster time slips by. Or so it seems.
And the time we spend asleep seems to be lost, but sleep is what makes awakeness even possible. There's a definite Zen trapped in that conundrum...but don't lose any sleep over it! And don't waste any valuable awake time thinking too hard about it!
How about you spend some time perusing the Poetry Friday round up? David Elzey is hosting this week at FOMAGRAMS. (I'll be visiting the round up tomorrow morning...after I sleep in!!)
Oh, how soothing. Love the poem and my bed! Flannel sheets await me every night :). Sweet Dreams!
ReplyDeleteYes! Great poem to end the week with, Mary Lee!
ReplyDeleteAhhh. I long to be a be-er too, not a do-er for a change. Will it happen this weekend? Doubtful.
ReplyDeleteIncidentally, Mary Lee, if we taught in a European school, we'd be winding down our half-term projects and getting ready for a week-long half-term break from October 22-30. American teachers (and students)don't get that; we have to make do with a professional day or a long weekend here and there all the way from August to our winter break, which barely allows us to recover before school opens again in January.
No wonder we're exhausted right about now--most people have no idea how hard teachers work. It's the job with no downtime!
Oh, yeah, Heidi. If I could have a week to regroup right now, I'd be a MUCH better teacher between now and winter break. There's not enough time in a 24 hour day to do everything I need to do to be Super Teacher AND have my own life...AND get the sleep I need to do/BE both.
ReplyDeleteMaybe it's time to move to Europe...
You hear people all the time saying the kitchen is the heart of the home, but I'm with this poem: lovelovelove my bed! It's a haven. Our cat loves it too. :) Wishing you a relaxing weekend.
ReplyDeletesometimes when i cannot sleep i remind myself of ancient beds i've seen in museums, like egyptian beds made of stone with a carved wooden pillow. somehow my bed feels all that more comfortable and sleep follows.
ReplyDeleteThose words touched me as I know that every night I "point my feet into that smoothness", happy to be prone for a while! Great thing, sleep!
ReplyDeleteLove the feel of my comforter too. And I know what you mean about time just rushing past you - I have deadlines zooming in from all corners and the only thing I can think of is to curl up in my bed with a great book. This poem is a sweet reminder of what I can look forward to after a long day's work.
ReplyDelete"so grateful to be held this way"
ReplyDeleteYes, a bed does hold us. I love the image of being "husked." Great poem. Flannel sheets for me, too!
Tonight when I get into bed (way too late at night) I'm going to think, "Husked, soft, a be-er only...." Thanks for sharing the link, Mary Lee.
ReplyDeleteWonderful poem!
ReplyDelete