Last week I talked about the “nothing-box,” but this week I would like to dive off into the ability to doze off, anywhere. It came to my attention that I might need to expand a little further into the dozing off phenomena after I watched an advertisement on TV about this poor English fellow who had a pretty serious case of narcolepsy.
He would just be walking along and BAM; he would be asleep mid-stride, crumbling to the ground in a deep sleep.
This poor gentleman took to wearing a helmet while he was washing his dishes because he was going to fall asleep again; this was certain, and I am sure he did not need any more problems with his head.
This unfortunate individual was shown walking his dog and BAM, out again, in the grass while his little dog doubled back to lick him on his face.
I am not making light of this situation because I know this is a very inconvenient condition to have, and it could also be dangerous. However, I just found it very interesting how someone could just fall asleep like that, anywhere, anytime.
I was thanking God for protecting me from such an odd setback when my wife looked at me and reminded me that I tend to get narcoleptic in certain conditions, mainly in public.
Yes, I'm admitting that I just might doze off sometimes, but my wife usually sticks me with that patented unseen elbow strike before my pastor even notices.
I tell her that I am not dozing due to lack of interest; I am just so engrossed in the Word and at such peace with my surroundings that my mind becomes relaxed and I just appear to be snoozing, but I am actually still alert and very much aware of those stealthy elbow strikes.
I tend to understand why some folks may fall asleep, not me of course, but it may be due to an overactive imagination.
These people may be heavy thinkers and are tired because they had too much on their minds like chasing down that elusive tailback or running down that fly ball in the gap.
Whatever their state of mind may have been, it has definitely gotten them in a place where there are not any snooze buttons.
You know, being a sports addict does have its advantages, especially if someone is an ex-jock.
The advantages, of course, lie in the obvious; we were at one time finely tuned machines of performance and such.
We had razor-sharp reflexes and our bodies were strong and our minds were clear. We could run and jump with ease and make a decision in a millisecond on whether or not to cut left or dive right.
We might still be able to make that split-second decision, but cutting left and diving right is no longer an option.
Probably, and most important, we may have passed down our love and passion for sports onto our children.
This love is, to me, the best advantage of all. We get to keep our competitive juices flowing while instructing our offspring on the finer points of the game.
Of course, there are disadvantages to go along with this advantage as well. Heavy thinking might cause minor narcoleptic symptoms and phantom quick-strike elbows aren't usually far behind.
