Sunday Afternoon Naps

I took a nap this afternoon.

That is to say, it's Sunday.

Growing up in a pastor's family, Sunday afternoon naps weren't optional. They were required. Nay, they were next to godliness.

When I was a child, I didn't appreciate the tradition. I remember being forced to go into a darkened room on Sunday afternoons, long after I had given up naps on other days of the week. A skinny shaft of sunlight would tease me from under the window shade. I could hear the neighborhood kids laughing and calling to each other. Sometimes, I would sneak to the window and pull the shade to the side, just an inch, so I could gaze out at the promised land and the heathens that inhabited it.

As I got older, the naps became a refuge. The Sunday schedule was firmly fixed by the time I was a teenager. Get up. Say good-bye to Dad, since he had to leave super early for Important Pastor Stuff. Take a shower. Eat a bowl of cereal for breakfast, the only day each week my Mom didn't make us a hot meal. Curl bangs. Tease hair. Fight with Mom about why I had to wear a slip under my dress. (She usually won the battle. I won the war. I haven't worn a slip since I was 16.) Drive to church. Screech into parking lot, since we were usually running late. (Maybe because 1 Mom + 4 kids - 1 Dad = perpetual tardiness.) Go to Sunday school. Go to church. Hang around and talk with friends. Say good-bye to friends. Hang around and read books in the library. Hang around some more. Eventually leave for home, where Mom served us a huge Sunday dinner. Eat until my stomach feels ready to burst. Fall into bed and nap until 5:00, when it was time to get up, fight with my Mom about why I shouldn't have to wear a dress to Sunday night service and then attend said service.

These days, the Sunday afternoon nap isn't a regularly scheduled event. My Sundays aren't nearly as structured now as they used to be. I guess that's because I'm the Mom now, and it's hard to find time to sleep without everyone suddenly remembering they need me.

But today, I napped. (Thank you, Corey.) And it was good.