The moon at night.
Sometimes, this could be me.
A modern folktale.
Once upon a time there was a woman who woke up at 3 am, every night, for no good reason.
She wasn’t worrying. She wasn’t sick. She wasn’t depressed. She just woke up – wide awake – at 3 am. Every night.
She tried cutting down on coffee, squeezed in some exercise during the day, but she still woke up every night. Night after night after night.
Now, this woman was busy. She had a family, job, friends, volunteer work, parents. She prided herself on getting things done. Driving the kids to activities, making meals, cleaning house, shopping, paying the bills, working, volunteering – she was always on the go. And she thrived on the activity, thrived on being in control and being needed.
Sometimes she felt lost in her busy-ness, as if something elusive was missing in her life. But she brushed off that nagging thought and went back to proudly crossing things off her long list. She didn’t have time to worry about it.
But she was used to being in control of her life, and so the night waking drove her crazy. In the mornings she was tired and frustrated.
She began to get angry. Finally, one night, waking up yet again, she sat up in bed, wide awake. She was really, really pissed off. “God!” she shouted to the air “Why am I waking up every night at 3 am?”
And to her utter astonishment, God answered: “Because it’s the only time I can get your attention.”
Sometimes, this could be me.
Seeker
(I’ve been told this story, with different details, several times by several people. This is just my re-telling of this tale.)
Seeker of Wisdom 