Sleep story · sea, simple
A caravan by the sea (a sleep story), when you have just finished work — for jet lag
Thin walls, wind outside, and the sound of shingle about fifty metres away.
Lights off. Press begin and let the story read itself to you, at the pace of sleep.
Screen on or off — we suggest dimming it, or simply closing your eyes after the first paragraph.
The story, in full
The bed folds out of the seating area and takes up most of the floor. Everything you need is within two metres of where you are lying. There is a gas ring, a kettle, and two cups, one of which is a different pattern.
The whole caravan smells of salt, gas and clean bedding. You can hear the shingle moving as the waves pull back. The window over the sink has a small crack in the corner that has been there for years.
Now feel your whole body at once, lying here, being held up. Let your ribs stop working so hard.
Feel your heels sink a little into the mattress. Notice the places where your body touches the bed, and let them be heavy.
The wind pushes against the side of the caravan in long, slow gusts. The sea is about fifty metres away, over a bank of shingle.
Let your palms open if they were closed. Let your feet get heavy first. Heavier than they need to be.
Your fingers can stop doing anything at all. Your eyelids can be too heavy to open, and that is fine.
There is a torch by the door in case you need to walk to the toilets in the night. The curtains are thin, and the moon makes a pale rectangle on the floor.
If nothing much is happening, that's not a problem. Nothing much is often the point. Notice the exact moment your attention left. You probably won't catch it. That's normal.
Your ankles can go loose now. Notice your hips, wide and settled.
Just the dark. Slower.
Stay with the weight of your body. Let the breath be the only thing you are doing. They will find their own way out.
The gap right after work is the easiest one to use.
The end. Sleep well.
14 paragraphs, roughly 2 minutes read slowly aloud. Written for sea, simple.
If this story does not settle you, try A kitchen late at night — a slow story for the end of the day, when the weather has kept you inside — for winding down, Sleep story: a bus at night, on a low-energy afternoon — for waking too early or Sleep story: the night train, when the house is busy — for a racing mind.