I’ve long believed that my ancestors (at least a sixth of them) had the right idea. The Spaniards are known for taking an afternoon siesta. Between one and three pm, they close their stores and restaurants, and almost all of their places of business (at least in the small towns…I think the larger cities are adopting other ways nowadays) and everyone goes home for lunch and a rest. Rather than fighting the afternoon blahs, they give in gracefully and rest, emerging for the late afternoon and evening refreshed and ready to stay up late.
I have believed in these afternoon naps for so long. It’s not even that I like to stay up horribly late (midnight’s not that late, is it?) but I don’t see why I have to fight my body’s natural inclination to rest at midday. Now, of course, there are days that it must be fought. Some days, other people’s timing rules and I have to go along with it. Fine.
But when I get to plan my day, I’ll plan to be home and curled up on the couch or in my bed around one pm so that I can rest my eyes. I don’t always sleep, in fact more often than not lately I do not. There’s a 3 year old in the house, after all, and he’s strongly opposed to the word “NAP”. In his world, it’s an evil word. But I take a rest. I let my mind wander where it will. I let my body relax.
In college, I used to plan my schedule around my nap time. My friends thought I was a bit crazy, but it worked for me. Of course, back then I was staying up til all hours and really needed the rest. Even back in high school, I could often be found napping, although I did my best to wait until after school to do it. *wink* That’s when I had to be careful to plan my day with active classes around 1pm to help me stay awake! lol.
I think the tradition of Siesta is a wonderful one. I don’t know why more of the world hasn’t adopted it!
