“There’s never enough time for all the naps you want.” ― Carolyn V. Hamilton

I finished a novel recently. The setting was Seville, Spain. The work schedule the characters were following reminded me of the naps I used to fight with all my strength as a child. In Spain, the workday begins at normal times to us, 8:30 or 9:00 am. It’s the lunch time where things change. Typically, they will go home for lunch at 1:30 and not return to work until 4:30 or 5:00pm. The work day ends at around 8:00 pm. Could you follow that schedule? Due to globalization probably, this type of work schedule is fading away.

What this really made me think about was the institutionalization of naps. The Spanish definitely have developed a “napping” culture. There are special names for naps in societies around the world:

Siesta = Spain
Riposo = Italy
Uti = Iceland (taken outside!)
Inemuri = Japan (multiple catnaps whenever possible)
Wushui = China

Napping is good for your overall health:

• A nap at midday can enhance alertness, mood, memory, and reduce stress.
• The ideal nap is between 20-30 minutes.
• Napping too late in the day can interfere with night time sleep.
• Drinking caffeine right before a nap – it doesn’t kick in until 30 minutes later.

See more details and take a sleep assessment: sleepfoundation.org

Gallup reports that Americans, especially young women, are getting less sleep than they need. Catching up with naps is one way to address this health problem.

I spent the summers with my grandparents – it was my grandmother who did the hard work. She mandated a nap each day. As a grandpa myself, I now fully appreciate the need for this custom. In her era, my grandmother did not allow anyone on the beds once they were made. When nap time arrived, she put a quilt on the floor (I don’t think we knew what the word “blanket” meant in South Texas). She lay down right there with us, read a story, and enjoyed the quick escape.

“I tell you, my naps are epic. They win awards.”  Tituss Burgess

When do you think we cross that boundary from fighting the nap to craving it? I do know there’s an in-between stage of life when older children just pass out. Usually in back seat car rides.

Reading the novel that took place in Spain reminded me that taking naps was a great idea. One drawback, the people in Seville didn’t have their dinner until 9pm or as late as 11pm! I’m not sure I could keep going that long. And be at work by 9:00 the next morning. What about you?

If napping is so good for us, why do we live in a society that isn’t built for taking a break and crawling into a hammock? It’s our American work culture that has built an anti-napping ethic. Someone who is sleeping at work or taking an extra long lunch break is considered lazy or lacking ambition. Napping is thought to be an obstacle to the fast track to success. Remember the early bird, the ant and the grasshopper, working all day long on the railroad? 

So…taking naps is very good for your health. We aren’t getting enough sleep. Working in America isn’t oriented to letting you have that nap. It would rather kill you for a buck. What are we to do? Research seems to indicate that you can make up some of your sleep debt on the weekends. Work your napping into all that fun you’re squeezing into Saturday and Sunday.

Football season is around the corner. I guess the lesson is that naps on the couch during the game on Saturday and after church on Sundays are good for everyone. Don’t fight your body.

I’d love nothing more than to go back in time and lie down on that quilt, hear my grandmother reading me story and then fall asleep to the singing of the cicadas outside in the hot sun.

“Sleep more at night. If it’s allowed at work or home, take a nap in the afternoon. You’ll be amazed at how much better you’ll feel.” Ben Stein