Sleeping the week away

Another day has come and gone in the blink of an eye. I mean this statement both figuratively and literally! The past three days all I have done is sleep. I wasn't trying to pull off a record for the most sleep (though I would say 21 hours each day is a record!), I was simply trying to get better. Something, whether it be swine flu or not, has been going around my school and I managed to catch it. Isn't it funny how I just recently recovered from being sick a month ago and now I am sick again? This year has been especially bad for me in terms of getting sick. I have gotten bronchitis, pneumonia, the common cold, lost my voice, and swine flu! If I asked the question, "could it get any worse?" I know the answer would be yes. Let's pray that I hold out for at least the end of the year (it's almost November, right?).

It's been strange getting so much sleep lately. It's as if the week literally has just disappeared in the blink of an eye. On Monday, I came home and fell asleep at 4, only to wake up to go to the bathroom and eat. The next day I slept until 1 in the afternoon and then went back to bed at 3. You would think over 20 hours of sleep would be plenty but that didn't stop me from sleeping the entire Wednesday away. I thought I would be unable to sleep last night, but I was wrong again. This morning is when my body decided it had slept enough and woke up promptly at 5:30 am. I tossed and turned in my bed, knowing that I couldn't go to school for fear I would get worse. I still took a few naps during the day, but woke up at around 9 to take a shower and eat. It's so weird sleeping for two whole days in a row and then suddenly staying awake for the next day.

Sleeping so much has accomplished one thing (other than making me feel better): I have thoroughly thought myself to death. This is because, in between drifting to and from sleep, I have had no other choice than to think. Maybe this doesn't happen to you, but before I fall asleep, I think about things. I think about what happened during the day and the plans for the week and how I am going to possibly manage finishing my homework. I guess it's more like worrying than thinking. Nevertheless, in between being miserably sick, I worried. How sad is that? On top of being so sick I could barely walk and had to sleep an insane amount of 21 hours each day, I worried about how I was going to get my homework done. I over-analyzed events that took place weeks ago and was frustrated at my family's lack of sympathy. I felt sorry for myself that I was missing out on my social life and was instead stuck at home, alone, and forgotten. Tuesday night I even cried (the first time in a while) about all the stress and worries in my life and just couldn't handle it anymore. I think the 101 temperature fever probably put my emotions over the top and tears couldn't contain themselves.

Does it really help to cry? Does worrying ever do any good? Isn't it normal to get sick and miss a few days of school? Considering this later, it doesn't seem like that big of deal. As usual, crying, getting upset, and worrying about trivial matters in life such as homework and stress never does the body any good. It is not the end of the world if I miss a few days of school. At the time, I felt like I could not bare to miss even a minute of my classes, but in reality life goes on. No matter how hard I try to plan out my life, God is going to throw away that planner right before my eyes and remind me that it's all about His plan, not mine. I got sick and I missed three days of school. That certainly wasn't in my plan, but I survived. I'm much better now and ready to take on life where I left off. It's most definitely going to be hard to catch up with schoolwork, but God will help me through it. I'll just take it one step at a time. It's time to wake up from my sleep.

Sometimes I just feel like sleeping my life away. I'm too scared to face it head on and would rather just sleep in. It reminds me of a song by Nevertheless called "Sleeping In." Here are some of the lyrics:

"I've been sleeping in for days,
'Cause when I am awake,
I will have to face my life.
...........................................
I need you here with me to face the world outside
'Cause I'm tired of sleeping in."

I really do like to sleep (sometimes too much) but sleeping your life away is not a good idea. It prevents you from enjoying life to its fullest. I have not accomplished anything for the past 3 days except sleep and getting better. No one wants to live an life of idleness. Eventually, no matter how long your nap is, it will come to an end. You will have to wake up and face life. I'm not exactly enthusiastic to return to my school routine tomorrow morning, but I would rather accomplish something other than sleep. It's time for me to wake up!

Psalm 3:5 "I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the LORD sustains me."

~God, help me to get through the rest of the week and catch up on my homework. Help me to wake up and not worry about tomorrow (Matthew 6:34). I can only do this with your help Father!

-Flower picture taken by Bubbly