If we observe birds, except for the nocturnal ones like bats and owls, all others head back to their residence at dusk. They revel in a long night sleep and begin their days as the daylight breaks. As they wake up, they fill the air with resonating sounds of their chirps, welcoming the momentous unveiling of the morning sky. Unique in every respect, the early hours of the day is an experience many of us miss out due to working late at night. And that way the early birds may be luckier ones than the night owls.
There are countries which do not have a typical 12 hour day and 12 hour night pattern as we do. They may have sunlight either for just a few hours of the day or a well-lit sky even after hours past nightfall. Although in India (being climatically tropical) we have day and night lengths of almost twelve hours, for most of us the day just never ends. Like anywhere else in the modern world, we refuse to let the curtains of the day roll down. With sundown, artificial lights and gadgets take over. Many of us remain habituated to sleeping late, even when we don't have to work during the nights.
While whatever time we choose to hit the sack, early or late, we must ensure we sleep enough. But the best way would always be going to bed early. We may blame the circadian (biochemical) clock in our body for staying awake late at night, but we should also know that the circadian rhythm in the body is trainable. Perhaps for that, we should shun bright light at night and inculcate some habits like restraining ourselves from looking at gadgets like phones and tablets post-sundown or at least minimize their usage as the night progresses. It is essential for our eyes to behold the darkness of the night, which once was a natural part of our lives until we began lighting our night skies and homes with man-made lights.
Although for all practical reasons, we may not be able to shun lights on the streets, at home, we can opt for milder ones. We could walk up to the terrace and spend some tranquil minutes of the night gazing the night sky. It can offer a soothing experience to the eyes and allow the mind to settle down from the pace of thoughts with which we spent the day. And it could be the most inexpensive way of getting a relaxation therapy.
Likewise, gazing the morning sky when the daylight breaks, exposes the eyes to the gradual dawn of sunlight. It could be the best time to build progressive thoughts. Many a time we would have experienced both, without casting a special attention to them. But more often we trade-off these simple pleasures with some unhealthy ones like staying glued to the television or perpetually staring at the phone screen, no matter if it's dawn, dusk or night. It's not that we should practice total abstinence from them, we just have to know that we are missing these remarkable natural phenomenon happening around us. On the contrary, if we synchronize our circadian rhythm with them and make it a habit to sleep well at nights, we will be able to rebuild ourselves and stay productive and energetic each day.
There are countries which do not have a typical 12 hour day and 12 hour night pattern as we do. They may have sunlight either for just a few hours of the day or a well-lit sky even after hours past nightfall. Although in India (being climatically tropical) we have day and night lengths of almost twelve hours, for most of us the day just never ends. Like anywhere else in the modern world, we refuse to let the curtains of the day roll down. With sundown, artificial lights and gadgets take over. Many of us remain habituated to sleeping late, even when we don't have to work during the nights.
While whatever time we choose to hit the sack, early or late, we must ensure we sleep enough. But the best way would always be going to bed early. We may blame the circadian (biochemical) clock in our body for staying awake late at night, but we should also know that the circadian rhythm in the body is trainable. Perhaps for that, we should shun bright light at night and inculcate some habits like restraining ourselves from looking at gadgets like phones and tablets post-sundown or at least minimize their usage as the night progresses. It is essential for our eyes to behold the darkness of the night, which once was a natural part of our lives until we began lighting our night skies and homes with man-made lights.
Although for all practical reasons, we may not be able to shun lights on the streets, at home, we can opt for milder ones. We could walk up to the terrace and spend some tranquil minutes of the night gazing the night sky. It can offer a soothing experience to the eyes and allow the mind to settle down from the pace of thoughts with which we spent the day. And it could be the most inexpensive way of getting a relaxation therapy.
Likewise, gazing the morning sky when the daylight breaks, exposes the eyes to the gradual dawn of sunlight. It could be the best time to build progressive thoughts. Many a time we would have experienced both, without casting a special attention to them. But more often we trade-off these simple pleasures with some unhealthy ones like staying glued to the television or perpetually staring at the phone screen, no matter if it's dawn, dusk or night. It's not that we should practice total abstinence from them, we just have to know that we are missing these remarkable natural phenomenon happening around us. On the contrary, if we synchronize our circadian rhythm with them and make it a habit to sleep well at nights, we will be able to rebuild ourselves and stay productive and energetic each day.