Sleep story · rain, green
A garden in the rain (a sleep story), when you are too tired to try hard — for a night when you do not want to think
Steady rain on leaves, and a chair under an awning that stays dry.
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
A snail is making its way along the bottom of the wall, going nowhere in particular. The path has gone darker where it is wet, and there are two small puddles near the step. Under the awning it is dry, and the sound is a steady, unhurried patter.
There is nothing to do about any of it, which is the good part. The watering can by the tap is full and nobody needs it. Somewhere in the hedge, a bird is sitting it out.
Feel one shoulder go heavy, then the other. Notice the places where your body touches the bed, and let them be heavy.
Let your upper arms fall wherever gravity puts them. Let your hands be completely still.
Water runs off the gutter in a thin, continuous line. The rain has settled into the kind that will last all afternoon without getting heavier.
Let the mattress take all of it. Your fingers can stop doing anything at all.
Notice the pull to make this mean something. It doesn't have to. If your mind is quiet, don't grab at it. Quiet comes and goes too.
Let your forearms get heavy and warm. Your chest can be still now.
Let the thoughts come and go without you getting up to answer. You can stop listening properly.
Nothing here needs following closely. Let the room get slightly further away. Let each breath be a little smaller than the last.
Too tired to try hard is exactly the right amount of tired for this.
No more sentences. Just the weight of you in the bed.
12 paragraphs, roughly 2 minutes read slowly aloud. Written for rain, green.
If this story does not settle you, try A kitchen late at night — a slow story for the end of the day, if you have done this a hundred times — for the hours after a late shift, A field under snow, if you are doing this instead of scrolling — for a restless night or A bus at night, when you want something simple — for an overtired night.