Slumberless Night

It’s three in the morning and I awaken to the sounds of my wife’s peaceful breathing, and the oscillating fan purring back and forth. I look at the red numbers of the clock, and then roll over to try to get back to sleep. My mind, however, begins to mull over all this past weeks events, and things I have ahead of me to do . After some time, I realize that slumber isn’t coming back soon, so I ease out of bed. I pull on my jeans and t-shirt and walk barefoot to the kitchen. I quietly open the fridge, pour myself a glass of milk, and walk through the dining room into the living room.

The large windows in the room reveal a blue-sequined sky of shimmering black velvet. The twinkling stars in the dark of this night are reminders to me of a vast universe, of how small Man is, and just how great God is. Countless men, over thousands of years, have gazed into these same heavens; have looked upon the same moon, and wondered at the vast expanse before them that is hidden by the light of day. The stars have fascinated us all, and stretched our imaginations. They have put us in our place, and put life in the proper perspective.

 We are but finite creatures made of, and living on a planet of, rock, water, and soil. Our earthly body is not long here, but we have a soul that lives forever, and staring into the endless heavens on a clear summers night, helps us better understand what the words eternal and infinite must mean. If we can see and believe in a never ending  universe, well it's not hard to believe in a never ending life with the Creator; the creator of all things great and small, simple and wondrous.

The breeze is gentle. The tree limbs sway softly, delicately, and the flag waves lightly; the red and white stripes shrinking and lengthening in the wind. I raise the window to catch the breeze, and as the fresh night air surrounds my face, my ears catch the  haunting songs of the night birds. The birds are in several trees within a hundred yards of the house. One calls a sweet melody to my left,and another joins in straight ahead, then another on my right, and yet another, until a chorus spreads through the cool night stillness. There is a pause and then, sweetly, they begin  all over again. I listen enchanted, and I am in awe of Mother Natures ability to soothe the soul in sight and sound, in beauty and simplicity.

After an hour of breathing the night air, and soaking up the music of wind and song, I realize that I am relaxed; that I've lost the burden of fretting, and that my eyes are weighting. I slowly close the window , latch the sash, and head back to the kitchen. As I wash out my milk glass, I see a raccoon amble across the yard on his nocturnal jaunt. He is nearing the end of his shift, I think, and in an hour or so I'll be beginning mine.

So, I return to my place for slumbering, and settle back in bed with the music of the night birds fresh in my head. I play the beautiful haunting melody over in my mind again, until I fold deep into my pillow, and blessed rest is mine once more.