Snapshots
Do you know what sleep onset is? It's the moment right before you fall asleep. You're not awake, but you haven't quite drifted off yet either. Maybe it happens to you when you're on the couch watching a movie, sitting through a boring lecture, or in bed just about to doze off. Your eyes begin to close, your body relaxes, and your brain shuts down. For me, it is at this point that for some reason the most vivid memories- the sounds, sights, smells, tastes, and emotions of my past- are relived in elaborate detail.
Right before I fall asleep, my brain fires off random memories of the past...
I feel nervous but ready. Prague is a strange city for sure, but it's just the beginning of my journey through Europe. I take every step more carefully than the next as I navigate the dark and mysterious cobblestone streets with my new friends. The butterflies in my stomach churn with the excitement of this new world. Endless possibilities lie ahead.
Escuchala, la ciudad respirando. I usually can't stand cities, but this one is different. A maze of red roofs, exquisite palaces, marble statues. A romantic mystery. As I lay in bed, the sound of strange sirens and roaring vespas echo in the distance. I want to fall asleep quickly so that the new day can begin.
The waves roar with sheer rage. It's too early to see anything, but you can simply feel it in the air. It could happen today, it could not. All I know is that I can flat out feel the force of the waves, and though I'm blocks away from the sea, I can taste the ocean with every breath. I feel closer to the ocean than ever before.
If year 3 is my last out here in Hawaii, it may as well be my teaching version of sleep onset. As I begin another year, the most vivid details of my past two of teaching are brought back to life in blinding detail. Yes, the struggles and tribulations are resurrected, but the best memories are also in full light. In every new student I get, I see the ones before them in glaring detail. The ones that seemed to have so much against them. The ones I sometimes guiltily wished would move down so I wouldn't have to try to accommodate all of their struggles. The ones that, in the end, made it so far despite all this because of hard work and passion.
It feels good to see and feel this kind of success before it even happens. I'm comfortable and relaxed this year. Not quite ready to fall asleep.
Right before I fall asleep, my brain fires off random memories of the past...
I feel nervous but ready. Prague is a strange city for sure, but it's just the beginning of my journey through Europe. I take every step more carefully than the next as I navigate the dark and mysterious cobblestone streets with my new friends. The butterflies in my stomach churn with the excitement of this new world. Endless possibilities lie ahead.
Escuchala, la ciudad respirando. I usually can't stand cities, but this one is different. A maze of red roofs, exquisite palaces, marble statues. A romantic mystery. As I lay in bed, the sound of strange sirens and roaring vespas echo in the distance. I want to fall asleep quickly so that the new day can begin.
The waves roar with sheer rage. It's too early to see anything, but you can simply feel it in the air. It could happen today, it could not. All I know is that I can flat out feel the force of the waves, and though I'm blocks away from the sea, I can taste the ocean with every breath. I feel closer to the ocean than ever before.
If year 3 is my last out here in Hawaii, it may as well be my teaching version of sleep onset. As I begin another year, the most vivid details of my past two of teaching are brought back to life in blinding detail. Yes, the struggles and tribulations are resurrected, but the best memories are also in full light. In every new student I get, I see the ones before them in glaring detail. The ones that seemed to have so much against them. The ones I sometimes guiltily wished would move down so I wouldn't have to try to accommodate all of their struggles. The ones that, in the end, made it so far despite all this because of hard work and passion.
It feels good to see and feel this kind of success before it even happens. I'm comfortable and relaxed this year. Not quite ready to fall asleep.
posted by Daniel T at 1:30 AM
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