Sleep story · sea, still
A lighthouse at the end of a long day — a slow story for the end of the day, when you need something unremarkable — for an overtired night
One light turning, a kettle, and weather you are on the right side of.
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 light goes out across the water and comes back, and goes out again. The room at the top is small, round and warm, with a kettle on a ring. The tea in your hands is too hot to drink and you are just holding it.
There is a chair pulled up to the window that fits exactly one person. The lighthouse will keep turning whether you watch it or not. Your coat is on the hook by the door, still wet at the shoulders.
Let your shoulder blades spread out and drop. Let your lower back sink down into the mattress.
Let your calves spread out and flatten. Let the pillow take the whole weight of your head.
A ship passes in the distance with its lights on, and then it does not. There is a logbook open on the table with the last entry in someone else's handwriting.
Notice your hips, wide and settled. Feel your cheeks let go.
If you're bored, stay with the boredom for a moment. It's usually thinner than it looks. If you're irritated, that's allowed. Irritation is just weather.
Feel the weight of your head on the pillow. Let the mattress take all of it.
You can stop listening properly. Stay.
Let the sound of this go soft at the edges. Let the room get slightly further away. Let the breath be the only thing you are doing.
Nothing dramatic happens here, and that is deliberate.
The room is dark, the day is finished, and nothing is required of you.
12 paragraphs, roughly 2 minutes read slowly aloud. Written for sea, still.
If this story does not settle you, try The night train — a slow story for the end of the day, if you are fitting this around other people — for a night when you do not want to think, The night train — a slow story for the end of the day, if you are sceptical about all of this — for winding down or A bus at night, if you are sceptical about all of this — for jet lag.