Today's Theme: Rest

Enjoy the peace of the night.

Theme for the 28th day of the month:

Everyone knows that productivity, creativity, and well-being are enriched when we’re well rested. But getting a deep and refreshing sleep is not as easy as it used to be. It’s frustrating to stay awake, tossing and turning with a restless mind, when we want and need to sleep. Watching the clock, we might worry about losing sleep and the looming pressure of the next day’s activities, only making it more difficult to relax.

A good night’s sleep comes from a balance in the rhythm of rest and activity. It’s so common to have too little deep rest and too much restless activity. Sometimes, the day is just too fast, too intense or too busy to unwind and relax naturally when it’s time to sleep. This is a symptom of the gap between the slower rhythms of our bodies and the faster speeds of technology-based lifestyles that we’re used to during our waking hours.

There’s nothing that compares to the peace of the night—moonlight, starlight, firelight, candlelight—a natural time for reflection, deep rest, and renewal for body and soul. There’s a naturally fertile time—after we finish the day’s activities and before we fall asleep—that’s especially suited to peace. But often this time is filled with weariness and depletion or the last-minute tasks of the day.

This time doesn’t need to be sacrificed to fatigue. It can be a time for reviewing the day, welcoming the creative impulses that gestate in the darkness, and choosing carefully the thoughts, images, and questions we take with us into sleep. It’s a time to savor and enjoy just how healing it is to slow down and take a long, slow exhale. When we take a few minutes to prepare for sleep, we find new reserves of energy in the night. And then tomorrow’s activities will be enriched by that special wisdom that only comes to us from a deep and peaceful sleep.

A suggestion for tonight: During the last half hour before you go to sleep, take a few minutes to review your day. Take special note of the moments for which you have gratitude, and clarify the most important questions and concerns you have in your life right now. Take these questions with you into the night, and anticipate the guidance you may receive in the morning when you awake.

Rhythm of Peace:  Cultivating Peace in Daily Life
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Check back tomorrow for a new theme!