A First-class Bedtime

A First-Class Bedtime

People who work hard sleep well, whether they eat little or much. But the rich seldom get a good night’s sleep.

Ecclesiastes 5:12

A few years ago I (Les) had an abundance of air miles that were going to expire if I didn’t use them. Short on time but not wanting to waste them, I asked my dad if he’d like to fly first class to Rome, Italy, with me for four days. “Here’s the deal,” I told him. “I’ll pay for the airline, if you want to pick up the hotel.” Seemed like a pretty good deal to me! Truthfully, Dad jumped at the chance and we had a terrific trip. Since Dad had been to Rome before, he knew just where we should go. We visited all the traditional landmarks, and through a friend of a friend we even attended a service with the pope at St. Peter’s Basilica. It was a fantastic trip. The only downside was flying first class.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining. It’s just that it has made all my other air travel seem so shoddy. The flight attendants didn’t serve the airline food I’m accustomed to. It was elegant cuisine that seemed to have no end. After the fresh fruit and cheese plate, they brought the salad, followed by hot soup, delicious breads, and a mouth-watering entrée. For dessert? Hot fudge sundaes! We couldn’t believe it. Flying two thousand feet above the earth somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean eating ice cream. It was too much. To top it all off, they brought out a gold foil box of chocolates to nibble on while we watched the movie we selected for our individual screens. After the feast, the real benefit of flying first class kicked in. Our chairs reclined. Not just a little—into a full-fledged bed with a privacy curtain that encircled it. It was like a mini apartment on the plane. To amend the old airline commercial a bit, “It’s the only way to sleep while you fly.”

However, the experience doesn’t hold a candle to sleeping with my spouse in our own bed. For most happy couples, their shared bed is one of the safest places on earth. It’s where intimacy—both physical and emotional—reaches its highest pitch. It’s where conversations go on even after the lights go off.

While many couples too often take this safe place for granted, we want you to give it some conscious thought today—especially on these wintery nights. What do you enjoy most about sharing your bed with your partner, about the ritual of relating under covers (and don’t think of this as a setup to just say “sex”)? Focus on the first-class feeling of sleeping with your soul mate, sharing pillow talk that’s sweeter than a box of chocolates.

Good night, good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow that I shall say good night till it be morrow.

—William Shakespeare