Insomnia

It’s ten minutes of four in the morning. I’ve been awake since before 3am, but just in the last few minutes decided to get up. I don’t know what’s happened that I’m unable to sleep. Maybe it was the late meal at an Italian eatery last night. Maybe it was my nap yesterday afternoon. Maybe it is the multitude of things stirring in my head. In any event, I’m here and you’re probably fast asleep.
There are things about this time of day, however, that are worth mentioning. If you’ve never experienced the late night (early morning) hours, you need to do that some time. It’s a different world out there. I used to, in another life, deliver newspapers in my local community (not Wichita). I started about this time of the day, or earlier. I found that I really didn’t know my own neighborhood and community like I thought I did.
The people are different this time of night. Yes, there are people out and around. Some have legitimate business out there…some don’t. The environment is different. Everyone relies on artificial light. A few times I would be out when the power had gone out for whatever reason. Now, that is eerie. Sometimes it would be raining or snowing. Sometimes the sky would be so clear one could almost literally see forever.
Things look different. One notices things that normally would escape notice in the light of day. The animals are different. Opossums, bats, and other creatures of the night are out and about. One’s senses are heightened. There’s more noticing of things that aren’t “just right”.
Then, depending on the time of year, about 5:30 or so the people of the day begin to stir. Waitresses go to work for the 6am shift. Nurses and aides trade shifts. The night people leave…the day people come on. Laborers, plumbers, garbage collectors and others begin the daily routines. Day has come and things return to normal, at least for the next 18 hours.
So we’ll see what today holds. Happy Monday to all.