Sleep story · sea, simple
A caravan by the sea, when you feel restless rather than tired — for a night when you do not want to think
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 sea is about fifty metres away, over a bank of shingle. The bed folds out of the seating area and takes up most of the floor. The window over the sink has a small crack in the corner that has been there for years.
There is a torch by the door in case you need to walk to the toilets in the night. There is a gas ring, a kettle, and two cups, one of which is a different pattern. The caravan rocks very slightly in the wind, which is more comforting than it sounds.
Notice your hips, wide and settled. Your jaw can drop slightly. Let your teeth part.
Let your calves spread out and flatten. Let your tongue sit heavy in your mouth.
The wind pushes against the side of the caravan in long, slow gusts. A clock on the wall ticks with a slight rattle on every second.
Your fingers can stop doing anything at all. Let your thumbs rest where they landed.
Feel your wrists loosen. Let your feet get heavy first. Heavier than they need to be.
Everything you need is within two metres of where you are lying. The whole caravan smells of salt, gas and clean bedding.
If you're sleepy, sit up a little. Or let the sleepiness be there. If your mind has wandered, that's not a mistake. Noticing is the practice.
Feel one shoulder go heavy, then the other. Feel your heartbeat somewhere far away.
Let your attention settle somewhere low, like your feet. Slower now.
Let each breath be a little smaller than the last. Let them. You do not have to count them.
Restless is different from tired, and it needs a different approach.
Let the words go now, and take the quiet with you.
14 paragraphs, roughly 2 minutes read slowly aloud. Written for sea, simple.
If this story does not settle you, try A field under snow, when you are too tired to try hard — for a racing mind, A boat at anchor, when you have tried everything else — for a restless night or A caravan by the sea, if you have done this a hundred times — for an overtired night.