Speaker 1: Welcome to bedtime Stories for everyone, in which nothing much happens,
Speaker 1: you feel good, and then you fall asleep. I'm Catherine Nikolay.
Speaker 1: I create everything you hear and nothing much happens. Audio
Speaker 1: engineering is by Bob Witttersheim. Thank you for listening and
Speaker 1: sharing our work with others. We give to a different
Speaker 1: charity each week, and this week we are giving to
Speaker 1: the Dougie Center. Their mission is to provide grief support
Speaker 1: in a safe place to children, teens, young adults, and
Speaker 1: their families. You can learn more at the link in
Speaker 1: our show notes. If you're looking for an ad free
Speaker 1: version of the show, you can subscribe to our premium
Speaker 1: feed through Nothing Much Happens dot com. Now sleep should
Speaker 1: be easy. I can help. I'm going to tell you
Speaker 1: a simple, low stake story full of relaxing details. All
Speaker 1: you have to do is listen, rest your mind on
Speaker 1: the sound of my voice, and it will work like
Speaker 1: a lullaby. Before you know it, you'll be waking up
Speaker 1: tomorrow feeling rested. I'll tell the story twice, and I'll
Speaker 1: go a little slower on the second time through. If
Speaker 1: you waken the night, you could turn the story right
Speaker 1: back on, or just think through any of the details
Speaker 1: you can remember. Now it's time to turn out the
Speaker 1: light and set down your stuff. Maybe this is a
Speaker 1: moment you've been waiting for all day, to slide down
Speaker 1: into your sheets and know that nothing more is needed
Speaker 1: from you. It's okay to just rest now, take a
Speaker 1: slow breath in and sigh again, in through the nose,
Speaker 1: out through your mouth. Good. Our story tonight is called
Speaker 1: Magic Words, and it's a story about a trip into
Speaker 1: town on a summer morning. It's also about the scent
Speaker 1: of fresh cut lumber, a dog biscuit buried in the
Speaker 1: flower beds, how a moment at the start of your
Speaker 1: day can alter your path, and something in a shop
Speaker 1: window that catches your eye. Magic Words. The morning started
Speaker 1: early this time of year, and I found myself waking
Speaker 1: most days just after the sun was up, listening to
Speaker 1: the birds outside my window and smelling the fresh summer air.
Speaker 1: This morning, I caught the scent of last night's storm.
Speaker 1: It had blown over, when the day would likely be
Speaker 1: sunny and clear, but the rain soaked scent lingered and
Speaker 1: smelled so good. I thought of the clover growing around
Speaker 1: my front steps, the cosmos in their window boxes, and
Speaker 1: the black locust tree in my yard, all drinking deep
Speaker 1: and feeling refreshed. Just as I sat up in bed
Speaker 1: began to stretch and blink at the morning light, I
Speaker 1: remembered what day it was. It was the first of
Speaker 1: the month, and I smiled and spoke my magic words aloud. Rabbit, rabbit,
Speaker 1: Maybe you have heard of this superstition, just a silly
Speaker 1: tradition that some people follow, including me, For those words
Speaker 1: to be the first thing out of your mouth on
Speaker 1: the morning of a new month. I was supposed to
Speaker 1: bring luck and prosperity, And whether or not it did,
Speaker 1: it always made me smile, which is its own kind
Speaker 1: of good fortune and wealth. My rabbit rabbit habit had
Speaker 1: started me thinking about my first words most days, just
Speaker 1: once a month. I found it was a way to
Speaker 1: lay a path for me to walk on the rest
Speaker 1: of the day, just by organizing my thoughts and speaking
Speaker 1: a word or two. When I first woke up, I
Speaker 1: close my eyes and open a little question mark space
Speaker 1: inside myself. What needed my attention today? What direction should
Speaker 1: I lean in? Usually within a second or two, some
Speaker 1: thought would edge to the front and raise its hand
Speaker 1: when I would speak its name out loud saying kindness, patience, fun, balance,
Speaker 1: whatever it was. Then through the day, when I needed
Speaker 1: a nudge, I'd find it, having been planted already in
Speaker 1: my head and heart. So they were my magic words. Rabbit, Rabbit.
Speaker 1: Being the less serious cousin of those daily mantras, it
Speaker 1: seemed like a good day to be a little less
Speaker 1: serious too. From the window, I could see the puddles
Speaker 1: drying on the sidewalk and the sun coming out bright
Speaker 1: and warm. A good morning to walk into town and
Speaker 1: treat myself to breakfast and a cup of coffee. Within
Speaker 1: a few minutes, I was stepping out of the house,
Speaker 1: pulling the door shut behind me, and tromping across the
Speaker 1: damp lawn and my sandals. For a moment, I thought
Speaker 1: I might be chilled in my t shirt, But as
Speaker 1: soon as I stepped out from under the shade of
Speaker 1: the locust tree and felt the sun on my skin,
Speaker 1: I was warmed through. I crossed the street and found
Speaker 1: a pace that woke me up. My love a walk
Speaker 1: in the morning, and I knew that being out in
Speaker 1: the sun at this part of the day would help
Speaker 1: my internal clock stay regulated, would helped to give me
Speaker 1: a better night's sleep. Tonight, I turned at the corner
Speaker 1: and passed a yard edged with a newly built fence.
Speaker 1: The fresh cut wood smelt so good in the morning air,
Speaker 1: I slowed to breathe it in and to spy through
Speaker 1: the slats. This neighbor had a little brown dog that
Speaker 1: I had met before on my walks, and lately he'd
Speaker 1: had a friend, a big greyhound, out in the yard
Speaker 1: with him. Funnily, I knew both their names, but had
Speaker 1: no idea what their humans were called. That we'd met
Speaker 1: more than once. Sure Enough, when I peeked through the fence,
Speaker 1: I could see Crumb, the little one, digging a hole.
Speaker 1: I was fairly sure he was not supposed to be
Speaker 1: digging beside the patio, while Bertie the greyhound lay in
Speaker 1: a patch of sunlight, clearly well into his first nap
Speaker 1: of the morning. I chuckled under my breath at them,
Speaker 1: and Crumb caught me looking. He had a biscuit in
Speaker 1: his mouth, which he was just about to drop into
Speaker 1: the hole he dug. But now that I'd see seen
Speaker 1: his hiding place, he huffed and trotted around the edge
Speaker 1: of the house to dig another. Oh dear, that second
Speaker 1: hole would be my fault. I walked on. I passed
Speaker 1: the corner store and saw that their front window was
Speaker 1: full of beach umbrellas, little buckets with matching shovels, and
Speaker 1: even a few pool floats blown up and ready to launch.
Speaker 1: I appreciated how little rhyme or reason this store had
Speaker 1: to its inventory. You could buy, I'll fell for sprouts,
Speaker 1: fireplace matches, little squares of homemade salted caramel, a lotto ticket,
Speaker 1: and a rainbow in er twoe, all in one spot,
Speaker 1: about a twentieth of the size of the big grocery
Speaker 1: store outside of town. Maybe I'd stop on my way
Speaker 1: home and see what silly selections I could make. Just
Speaker 1: as I turned back to the sidewalk, I spotted something
Speaker 1: pale moving through the yard of the house opposite, and
Speaker 1: as my eyes focused, I realized what it was. A rabbit,
Speaker 1: a real rabbit. It had stopped in place as I
Speaker 1: walked closer. It seemed concerned with me. It was munching
Speaker 1: on a hostile leaf, small cheeks, moving at a clip.
Speaker 1: I stood and just watched for a bit. I wondered
Speaker 1: if I had called her here today with my magic words,
Speaker 1: or if somehow she had called me Finally I walked on,
Speaker 1: leaving her to her breakfast and thinking of my own.
Speaker 1: I had options, and they were all good ones. There
Speaker 1: was the diner, with its final booths and those spinny
Speaker 1: stools along the counter. They served excellent sweet potato hash,
Speaker 1: as well as very good biscuits and gravy. Their coffee
Speaker 1: was reliable, with a bit basic, and the people watching
Speaker 1: was topp tier. Then there was the bakery, their front
Speaker 1: walk full of tables and umbrellas. They had fancy lattes
Speaker 1: and every kind of pastry or bagel that I could want. Oh,
Speaker 1: and the farmer's market was also open this morning, and
Speaker 1: they had a waffle truck. Come on. That sounds pretty
Speaker 1: great waffles. Amid the bustling fruit and vegetable stalls, I
Speaker 1: was at a literal crossroads, trying to decide which way
Speaker 1: to turn to follow the true desire of my taste buds.
Speaker 1: When I looked over my shoulder and spotted in the
Speaker 1: window of the tea shop a small porcelain rabbit. I
Speaker 1: stepped closer and saw the tiny cracks in her glaze,
Speaker 1: the delicate pink of her nose, and thought it had
Speaker 1: been a while since I'd had a cup of their
Speaker 1: macha to start my day. I loved their homemade granola
Speaker 1: an almond milk, and thought that my magic words hadn't
Speaker 1: yet led me astray, so I may as well follow
Speaker 1: them a bit longer, magic words. The mornings started early
Speaker 1: this time of year, and I found myself waking most
Speaker 1: days just after the sun was up, listening to the
Speaker 1: birds outside my window and smelling the fresh summer air.
Speaker 1: This morning, I caught the scent of last night's rain storm.
Speaker 1: It had blown over and the day would likely be
Speaker 1: sunny and clear, but that rain soaked scent lingered and
Speaker 1: smelt so good. I thought of the clover growing around
Speaker 1: my front steps, the cosmos in their window boxes, and
Speaker 1: the black locust tree in my yard, all drinking deep
Speaker 1: and feeling refreshed. Just as I sat up in bed
Speaker 1: and began to stretch and blink the morning light, I
Speaker 1: remembered what day it was. It was the first of
Speaker 1: the month, and I smiled and spoke my magic words aloud. Rabbit, Rabbit,
Speaker 1: maybe you have heard of this superstition, just a silly
Speaker 1: tradition that some people, including me, follow, for those words
Speaker 1: to be the first thing out of your mouth on
Speaker 1: the morning of a new month, I was supposed to
Speaker 1: bring luck and prosperity, and whether or not it did,
Speaker 1: had always made me smile, which is its own kind
Speaker 1: of good fortune and wealth. My rabbit Rabbit habit had
Speaker 1: started me thinking about my first words most days, not
Speaker 1: just once a month. I found it was a way
Speaker 1: to lay a path for me to walk on the
Speaker 1: rest of the day, just by organizing my thoughts and
Speaker 1: speaking a word or two. When I first woke up,
Speaker 1: I closed my eyes and open up a little question
Speaker 1: mark space inside myself. What needed my attention today? What
Speaker 1: direction should I lean in? Usually within a second or two,
Speaker 1: some thought would edge to the front and raise it
Speaker 1: its hand, and I would speak its name out loud,
Speaker 1: saying kindness, patience, fun, balance, whatever it was. Then through
Speaker 1: the day, when I needed a nudge, I'd find it
Speaker 1: having already been planted in my head and heart. So
Speaker 1: they were my magic words, rabbit Rabbit. Being the less
Speaker 1: serious cousin of those daily mantras, it seemed like a
Speaker 1: good day to be a little less serious too. From
Speaker 1: the window, I could see the pot drying on the
Speaker 1: sidewalk and the sun coming out bright and warm. Good
Speaker 1: morning to walk into town and treat myself to breakfast
Speaker 1: and a cup of coffee. Within a few minutes, I
Speaker 1: was stepping out of the house, pulling the door shut
Speaker 1: behind me, and tromping across the damp lawn in my sandals.
Speaker 1: For a moment, I thought I might be chilled in
Speaker 1: my t shirt, But as soon as I stepped out
Speaker 1: from under the shade of the locust tree, I felt
Speaker 1: the sun on my skin was warmed through. I crossed
Speaker 1: the street and found a pace that woke me up.
Speaker 1: I love a walk in the morning, and I knew
Speaker 1: that being out in the sun at this part of
Speaker 1: the day would help my internal clock stay regulated, would
Speaker 1: help to give me a better night's sleep to night.
Speaker 1: I turned at the corner and passed a yard edged
Speaker 1: with a newly built fence. The fresh cut wood smelt
Speaker 1: so good in the morning air. I slowed to breathe
Speaker 1: it in and to spy through the slats. This neighbor
Speaker 1: had a little brown dog that I'd met before on
Speaker 1: my walks, and lately he'd had a friend, a big greyhound,
Speaker 1: out in the yard with him. Finally, I knew both
Speaker 1: their names, but had no idea what their humans were called,
Speaker 1: though we'd met more than once. Sure Enough, when I
Speaker 1: peeked through the fence, I could see Crumb, the little one,
Speaker 1: digging a hole. I was fairly sure he was not
Speaker 1: supposed to be digging beside the patio, while Bertie the
Speaker 1: greyhound lay in a patch of sunlight, clearly well into
Speaker 1: his first nap of the morning. I chuckled under my
Speaker 1: breath at them, and Crumb caught me looking. He had
Speaker 1: a biscuit in his mouth, which he was just about
Speaker 1: to drop into the hole. But now that I'd seen
Speaker 1: his hiding place, he huffed and trotted around the edge
Speaker 1: of the house to dig another. Oh dear, that second
Speaker 1: hole would be my fault. I walked on. I passed
Speaker 1: the corner store and saw that their front window was
Speaker 1: full of beech umbrellas, little buckets with matching shovels, and
Speaker 1: even a few pool floats blown up and ready to launch.
Speaker 1: I appreciated how little rhyme or reason this store had
Speaker 1: to its inventory. You could buy elf elves, sprouts, fireplace matches,
Speaker 1: little squares of homemade salted caramel, a lotto ticket, and
Speaker 1: a rainbow inner tube, all in one spot, about a
Speaker 1: twentieth size of the big grocery store outside of town.
Speaker 1: Maybe i'd stop on my way home and see what
Speaker 1: silly selections I could make. Just as I turned back
Speaker 1: to the sidewalk, I spotted something pale moving through the
Speaker 1: yard of the house opposite, and as my eyes focused,
Speaker 1: I realized what it was. A rabbit, a real rabbit.
Speaker 1: It stopped in place as I walked closer, but seemed
Speaker 1: unconcerned with me. I was munching on a hostile leaf,
Speaker 1: small cheeks moving at a clip. I stood and just
Speaker 1: watched it for a bit. I wondered if I had
Speaker 1: called her here today with my magic words, or if
Speaker 1: somehow she had called me. Finally, I walked on, leaving
Speaker 1: her to her breakfast and thinking of my own. I
Speaker 1: had options, and they were all good ones. There was
Speaker 1: the diner, with its final booths on the spinny stools
Speaker 1: along the counter. They served excellent sweet potato hash, as
Speaker 1: well as very good biscuits and gravy. Their coffee was reliable,
Speaker 1: if a bit basic, and the people watching was top tier.
Speaker 1: Then there was the bakery. Their front walk was full
Speaker 1: of tables and umbrellas, and they had fancy lattes and
Speaker 1: every kind of pastry or bagel that I could want. Oh,
Speaker 1: and the farmer's market was also open this morning, and
Speaker 1: they had a waffle truck come on. That sounds pretty
Speaker 1: great waffles. Amid the bustling fruit and vegetable stalls. I
Speaker 1: was at a literal crossroads, trying to decide which way
Speaker 1: to turn to follow the true desire of my taste buds,
Speaker 1: when I looked over my shoulder and spotted in the
Speaker 1: window of the tea shape up a small porcelain rabbit.
Speaker 1: I stepped closer and saw the tiny cracks in her glaze,
Speaker 1: the delicate pink of her nose, and thought that it
Speaker 1: had been a while since I'd had a cup of
Speaker 1: macha to start my day. I loved their homemade granola
Speaker 1: an almond milk. I thought my magic words hadn't yet
Speaker 1: led me astray, so I may as well follow them
Speaker 1: a bit longer. Sweet Dreams,