Between the Blankets

The Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · May 23, 1865

Between the Blankets.

Some people take their cares and troubles to bed with them. It is a bad plan, for they are diabolical bed-fellows.—Even if tired "Nature's sweet restorer whips the spirit off to dream-land in the midst of its repinings and forebodings, there is no comfort for it there. Of the last sad waking thoughts, are born visible imps that haunt us in the realm of Morpheus, and we fight with horror all night long. Happy are those who can put off their day troubles with their day clothing, and as they assume the horizontal, forget all the annoyances that belong to perpendicular life. We have known people who could do all this—individuals, who, after struggling from morning till night, in Sloughs of Despond, and getting miserably hemauled by the Giant Despair; no sooner slipped between the sheets, than the Angel of Sleep, who seemed to have been lying in wait there to bless them, took them on her wings and bore them to Elysium. To fight over again in bed the battle of life, as many do in their slumbers, is a miserable business. Still more unpleasant is it to be surrendered in sleep to all sorts of vague and impossible phantoms, which are none the less disagreeable that they are utterly absurd. Worst of all, is to lie through the weary watches of the night, self-tormented. The best thing that nervous, highly impressible, fidgety people can do after getting into bed, is to lie resolutely still, and try to abstract their minds from the occurrences of the day. The power of doing this is natural to many, but it may also be acquired by persevering effort. The will of the weakest is a mighty instrument, when fairly brought into play. —Sunday Times.