War & Sleep
Maybe it was because I ate cheese. Or had dinner too late. Maybe it was that last drink. Or maybe I should not have had that little treat. In another life and time, these were some of the internal dialogues I was having. Sleep or a normal sleep had developed a habit of evading me. But only on humpday. Regular sleep was no problem on every other day of the christian week and twice even on the Sabbath. Sweet sleep. Fluffy and light. Tender and bright. Rich and fulfilling. What a thing to have and what a thing to lack and on humpday to boot.
The admin of Life cares little if you’ve slept or humped. It cares only that the admin is adulted. Like much of adulting, sleep is as sleep does. ‘Sleep when you’re dead’ is a common hollywood script endlessly mouthed in real life and online. Along with other hollywood lines like; have a whisky (or three), make this magic potion my grandma used to make. Take these pills. Do these three things and follow these exact instructions. Sometimes the hollywood script gets personal. You need therapy, you should leave your partner, he’s no good for you or it’s time you quit that job. Then there’s the heal the rift with your family, go back to your religion or my personal favourite; you need a weekend off and you’ll be right as rain scripts.
There are of course helpful bits of the hollywood script which mostly involve establishing a steady routine, exorcising the electronics dependency and regular exercise. All mostly helpful if you’re battling to sleep on humpday or any other day for that matter. It’s also important to establish if you’re experiencing a bout of sleeplessness or if it might be a case of chronic insomnia. A healer (sometimes also the same person as a doctor), a therapist and at least one good friend are vital to fixing the sleeplessness or insomnia. But before you fall asleep reading this, let me add that this little blog is itself being prepared while enduring a mild if surprising bout of sleeplessness. Or rather being prepared the morning after a bout of unseasonal sleeplessness; on humpday.
I could not say what has brought on this damming state of affairs and interruption to the regular admin of Life. What I do know is that it’s acute, not chronic and maybe it’s the lack of the actual chronic that’s sparked this. Who knows? I’m sleep deprived, everything’s possible and nothing’s too depraved. Right now though, nothing feels more depraved than going to bed and sleeping through a lovely summer day in the west coast fishing village. Foregoing the walk up the mountain in friendly company, a swim or the luxury of a few hours in the company of light and celestial music in human form.
No, that’s not the hollywood script of light and celestial music; it’s the real deal which is nowhere near as dull nor trite as the hollywood optics would have one believe. Can I describe it? No. It is beyond my abilities to do so. Maybe more gifted writers and other artists can and have done so but being sleep deprived means I can barely remember how to tie my laces let alone recall which books and passages have done this work.
In my current state, it might be easier to make a list of the current political leaders that have been taken hostage and their human forms replaced by an alien species. But you already know the names on that list. They voted against stopping an unjust war and not for the first time. They have failed to support the action to bring this unjust war to the global court. Maybe they’re just sleep deprived. Who knows what depraved things it can drive a human being to. Oh wait, that list has already been written and presented at the court.
In any event, if the court finds against them (most unlikely) the sleep deprived western leaders will just ignore the findings and rulings of the court. Which puts the court itself on trial here. in the words of Former British Ambassador to Uzbekistan, Craig Murray: “Israel is not on trial here; what’s on trial is actually the international court.”
War & Sleep is a little blog that will put you directly to sleep.
© Jesh Baker for Oppi Stoep 2024, All Rights Reserved
