Listen To Sleep - Quiet Bedtime Stories & Meditations

A sleepy classic by E.M. Forster read by singer/songwriter Kristof Hajos.  Kristof and I were introduced virtually by a mutual friend last year. He is a singer/lyricist/writer living in Amsterdam and his work touches me deeply. I want to share some of it with you in this episode, so it starts with one of his recent songs and then Kristof reads one of his favorite stories for you in his beauti...

A sleepy (not scary) ghost story about a woman's search for a message from her lost husband.  Cwtches are the topic on the blog this week. In our family, it's our black cat Ninja who can't get enough of them. There are a couple of very cute pics of him getting cwtches from me and Joe at https://www.listentosleep.com/blog/cwtches/ .  If the podcast helps you sleep, please consider support...

A sleepy viking tale about Odin's search for wisdom and a magical wolf who would not be tamed.  The first hints of autumn are in the air here on the mountain. I wrote a bit about it and put up a few pictures on the blog at https://www.listentosleep.com/blog/hints-of-autumn/ . There's also a short video I made to help you have a moment of peace during the day. If the podcast helps you sle...

A sleepy fairy tale about a good-hearted fairy who tries to help, but winds up making things a little worse first. Joe and I planted some raspberries down by the creek this year with the hope that their roots will reach the creek water level next year. They still need a little help, so I took a video of our late afternoon walk to water them by hand. You can watch it on my tiktok or on the blog at...

From Thoreau's Walden, a story about life in the country and the importance of solitude. It was a sad week on the mountain, and the community is mourning the loss of a wonderful neighbor, father, grandfather and husband. I wrote a bit about our neighbor, Greg, and what he meant to all of us on the blog this week. It's at https://www.listentosleep.com/blog/a-life-well-lived/ .  If the podcast...

A sleepy tale about a couple on a drive through the Welsh countryside who come upon a slightly bizarre but friendly inn. This week we had a couple Oak Titmouse babies leave the nest their mother built on our porch. You can see a picture of them and find a link to learn a little more about Oak Titmice on the blog at https://www.listentosleep.com/blog/leaving-the-nest/ . If the podcast helps you sle...

Sleepy musings on summer & nature by Walt Whitman in an extended episode recorded outside on a summer evening. It's been very hot and smoky here on the mountain, and this was a bit of  a difficult week for me. I wrote about why and what I'm learning from  these challenges on the blog at https://www.listentosleep.com/blog/facing-a-fire/ .  If the podcast helps you sleep and you'd...

The sleepy classic about a toy rabbit who becomes real.  Another one of my best friends came for a visit this week and brought his 'best friend,' Ozzy, to teach him how to swim. It was so much fun! I put a picture of the pups and some video up on the blog at https://www.listentosleep.com/blog/learning-to-swim/ .  If the podcast helps you sleep and you'd like to support my mission to help...

A sleepy Viking tale where Thor and Loki try to best the king of the giants.  This week I'm celebrating the podcast reaching the one million download mark. Thank you so much for being a part of that. 🙏💖  If the podcast helps you sleep and you'd like to support my mission to help more people get better sleep, you can do that at https://www.listentosleep.com/support .  You can read...

A sleepy fairy tale about a prince who gets lost in the woods and finds a new home on a magical horse.  There's a Sierran treefrog living in the drain of our outdoor bathtub who likes to shower with us. You can see a video of it on the blog at https://www.listentosleep.com/blog/bath-tub-frog/ .  At the website, you can also search and listen to over 100 quiet bedtime stories for free. Th...

An old Persian fairy tale about a poor boy who gets lost in the desert and falls in love with a princess.  Joe found a rattlesnake in the garden this week. If you want to see a picture of it and read about how we handle venomous snakes here on the mountain, I wrote about it in the blog this week at https://www.listentosleep.com/blog/rattlesnakes-in-the-grass/ .  If the podcast helps you...

A great sleepy short story about a writer in Victorian Paris, with a supernatural twist.  We got a visit from a black bear down by the creek last week, and it was awesome. I posted some pictures taken by one of my best friends on the blog at https://www.listentosleep.com/blog/bears-by-the-swimming-hole/ .  If the podcast helps you sleep, would you support my mission to help more people g...

A sleepy Seneca Native American tale about a magical journey to adulthood and marriage.  It's been very hot here on the mountain, and we've been spending lots of time at the swimming hole. We even got a visit from a black bear down there one day. Find pictures taken by one of my best friends, Chris (he's also a fantastic photographer) on the blog at https://www.listentosleep.com/blog/bears-by...

This is a free preview of Listen To Sleep Plus. We just finished Alice's Adventure's in Wonderland last week. We're starting Peter Pan this week, and I'm really enjoying reading it. :) You can subscribe to Listen To Sleep Plus at https://patreon.com/listentosleep . You'll get new chapters of Peter Pan over the coming weeks and other longer books read serially in the Wednesday night episodes: that'...

A sleepy Norwegian fairy tale that isn't a Viking myth, but it's got trolls, princesses, a magical journey and the hero, Halvor. It's beautiful here on the mountain and if you want to see some pictures and read about what we've been up to, it's on the blog at https://www.listentosleep.com/blog/ . You can search and listen to over 100 quiet bedtime stories for free at https://www.listentosleep.com...

A sleepy fairy tale with all the usual suspects; a king, a prince, a princess and some fairies.  It's summer here on the mountain and one of my best friends is visiting so we're spending the warm afternoons down by the swimming hole. You can see a picture and read about what we've been up to at https://www.listentosleep.com/blog/creek-days-with-best-friends/ .  You can search and listen...

A sleepy fairy tale about a prince and a swallow who gave away everything to help others.  On the blog this week, you can see photos I took of a firecracker flower, a beautiful and somewhat rare native around here, and the baby ring-necked snake that Joe and I tried to rehabilitate. Go to https://www.listentosleep.com/blog/firecracker-flowers-ring-necked-snakes/ .  You can search and lis...

A beautiful story from Thoreau's Walden that was an inspiration for my life in the mountains.  I had a bit of a difficult week, and rereading this story after a morning walk through the woods reminded me how simple and precious life really is. I wrote a little about it and posted some pictures from my walk on the blog at https://www.listentosleep.com/blog/where-i-live-and-what-i-live-for/ .&n...

A sleepy Viking tale about a stubborn giantess who winds up happier after not getting her way.  As we say farewell to spring on the mountain, the last big bloom of spring flowers is here. There are some pictures on the blog at https://www.listentosleep.com/blog/farewell-to-spring/ .  If the podcast helps you sleep, please consider supporting it at https://open.acast.com/public/patreon/fa...

A sleepy story about loving someone for who they are and not who you think they are.  If the podcast helps you sleep and you’d like to support my dream of being your bedtime storyteller from my cozy mountain cabin, please consider subscribing to Listen To Sleep Plus at https://open.acast.com/public/patreon/fanSubscribe/3437112 . For $5/month, subscribers get 8 new ad-free episodes a month and...

Lewis Carroll’s classic masterpiece, by request for a subscriber. This is a free preview of Listen To Sleep Plus. Subscribe to Listen To Sleep Plus at https://patreon.com/listentosleep to get the rest of this story and other longer books read serially in the Wednesday night episodes. You'll get a total of 8 or more new episodes every month, and the entire re-mastered ad-free catalog of storie...

A sweet, sleepy story by Susan Glaspell about accepting loss and learning to live again. The spring flowers are still amazing around here. If you want to see a picture of the California-native red ribbons that I took down by the creek this week, it's on my blog at https://www.listentosleep.com/blog/red-ribbons/ . If the podcast helps you sleep and you’d like to support my dream of being your bedti...

A sleepy fairy tale about a good-hearted girl who finds a secret hidden in a pot of pink flowers.  There are so many flowers blooming on the mountain right now. A pretty purple and white one called pussy ears came up this week. I posted a couple of pictures of it on the blog at https://www.listentosleep.com/blog/pussy-ears/ if you want to see what they look like.  If the podcast helps yo...

A beautifully descriptive, slice-of-life story from Katherine Mansfield about childhood innocence and caring for your neighbors.  Innocence, or collinsia heterophylla, is also the name of one of my favorite flowers, and they just started blooming up here on the mountain. Purple and white, they are a little less than a foot tall and look like tiny pagodas. You can see some pictures I took on t...

A sleepy fairy tale about a young orphaned prince and princess and the little bird who helps them finally find their home.  One of my favorite migratory birds, the black-headed grosbeaks, have returned to the mountain. Their song is as beautiful as their plumage, so I recorded it and put it in the podcast this week to share it with you. There's also a picture of the bird who's singing it on m...