SOLSTICE SLUMBER

Solstice Slumber

Marilyn E. Wheeless. Kenai

‘How do you sleep?; she asked, in perfect honesty.

‘When the sun shines nearly all night long?’

Isn’t it hard to close your eyes with birds still singing song?

I have to smile because I am exactly where I want to be.

You have no blackout curtains,’ she moans expressively.

‘How can you possibly go to sleep, something here is wrong.

If it was me I’d toss and turn as if the sun was one big gong.’

The sun has not gone down, when it’s time for work worn sleep.

I merely close my eyes against the light which seeks to seep.

I have no blocking curtains, or way to stop bird’s cry.

My eyelids are my curtains, birdsong a lullaby.

It’s hard to explain, to those who live with dark…

Who have proscribed sleep patterns the evening hours to mark.

For me, I find it simpler to merely nod without a peep.

Crawl into my sunny bed, close my eyes, and go to sleep.

More in Life

Promotional image courtesy Amazon MGM Studios
Dwayne Johnson as Callum Drift, J. K. Simmons as Santa Claus, Chris Evans as Jack O’Malley and Lucy Liu as Zoe Harlow in “Red One.”
On the Screen: ‘Red One’ is light on holiday spirit

The goofy, superhero-flavored take on a Christmas flick, feels out of time

Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion
A gingerbread house constructed by Aurelia, 6, is displayed in the Kenai Chamber of Commerce’s 12th Annual Gingerbread House Contest at the Kenai Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center on Wednesday.
The house that sugar built

Kenai Chamber of Commerce hosts 12th Annual Gingerbread House Contest

Pistachios and pomegranates give these muffins a unique flavor and texture. (Photo by Tressa Dale/Peninsula Clarion)
A chef is born

Pistachio and pomegranate muffins celebrate five years growing and learning in the kitchen

Make-ahead stuffing helps take pressure off Thanksgiving cooking. (Photo by Tressa Dale/Peninsula Clarion)
Holiday magic, pre-planned

Make-ahead stuffing helps take pressure off Thanksgiving cooking

Virginia Walters (Courtesy photo)
Life in the Pedestrian Lane: Let’s give thanks…

Thanksgiving has come to mean “feast” in most people’s eyes.

File
Minister’s Message: What must I do to inherit?

There’s no way God can say “no” to us if we look and act all the right ways. Right?

Jane Fair (standing, wearing white hat) receives help with her life jacket from Ron Hauswald prior to the Fair and Hauswald families embarking on an August 1970 cruise with Phil Ames on Tustumena Lake. Although conditions were favorable at first, the group soon encountered a storm that forced them ashore. (Photo courtesy of the Fair Family Collection)
The 2 most deadly years — Part 1

To newcomers, residents and longtime users, this place can seem like a paradise. But make no mistake: Tustumena Lake is a place also fraught with peril.

tease
Off the shelf: Speculative novel holds promise of respite

“A Psalm for the Wild-Built” is part of the Homer Public Library’s 2024 Lit Lineup

The cast of Seward High School Theatre Collective’s “Clue” rehearse at Seward High School in Seward, Alaska, on Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Seward’s ‘Clue’ brings comedy, commentary to stage

The show premiered last weekend, but will play three more times, on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 15-17

Mary Nissen speaks at the first Kenai Peninsula history conference held at Kenai Central High School on Nov. 7-8, 1974, in Kenai, Alaska. Photo provided by Shana Loshbaugh
Remembering the Kenai Peninsula’s 1st history conference — Part 2

The 1974 event inspired the second Kenai Peninsula history conference, held in April, 2017

In 1954, David Nutter (right) and his younger half-brother Frank Gwartney were ready for their first day of school in Sitka. (Photo courtesy of the Nutter Family Collection)
Finding Mister Nutter — Part 6

Chasing down the facts about Warren Nutter was never going to be simple

This slow-simmered ox tail broth makes this otherwise simple borscht recipe quite luxurious. (Photo by Tressa Dale/Peninsula Clarion)
Borscht from the source

This homestyle stew recipe draws on experience of Russian cook