The terror of the night

I don't mean to belittle anyone, but some people are terrified of the night.  I guess fear of something or the other is natural in everyone's life.  I doubt I have seen anyone who has never felt fear.  I agree there are many who learn to face their fears and appear 'fearless' now, but I won't believe for a minute that they were born this way.

And I suppose the most universal fear is the fear of 'monsters' under the bed or the fear of the dark.  Though Pixar has dealt with this topic in a humorous manner, it is still a matter of concern for many.  I have seen many people unable to sleep without some light in the room.  I have seen people unwilling to sleep alone in their rooms.  I have seen people reluctant to take a walk once it got dark.  And even if psychology calls these fears irrational, it is real.  People experience it in their daily lives.

Coming back to the theme of 'bedroom monsters', reason tells us that there is no such things as monsters or scary beings in the bedroom.  But once the lights are off, and the house is quiet, every shadow, every sound and even too much of quiet brings the imagination to life.  Shadows do not seem to be what they actually are...sounds seem to be louder than they should be...and so on.  And the worst thing that could happen once imagination runs wild is if someone suddenly enters the room!

Where am I going with this?  My small family has its own terror of the night.  And it is not hiding under the bed; it resides on top of it.  Two days ago when I was blissfully awake, I felt someone tugging my scapular (something I wear around my neck) and chocking me!  The night before, my wife felt someone pulling her hair and grabbing her nose in the middle of the night.  And these are just two instances of a phenomenon that is happening almost on a daily basis now.

I am not writing a script for the next Paranormal movie here.  It is our dear daughter who is behind all this.  She has gotten into the habit of waking up in the middle of the night.  And once she is awake, she just pulls herself to a sitting positions and goes to work...without making a sound!  Last night, she almost managed to climb over our legs and fall from the bed!  Not that she succeeded, but that doesn't stop her from trying.  And all this last only for half hour or less...then she automatically goes back to sleep.  All this without making a sound.  And no, she is not asleep while she does all this!

It is amazing how not a day goes by without something new happening...without Jenny finding a new way to keep herself occupied.  Hats off to kids; their imagination and innovation knows no bounds.  And we parents are relishing everything that she does. How did we live before having the kid? :)