Sleeping Child

A Story by Caleb

A memoir of a summer day in Missouri.

“Hey, what time is it?” a voice called out behind me. I turned.

“Time for a nap, Jason.” I said quietly. “You’ll want your rest for what’s coming later.”

“What’s coming later?” asked Jason, who was lying down on his bed. He was a nice kid. He wore glasses and looked like any other kid his age, except for the dead, bloodshot eye on the right side of his face. He didn’t try to argue his way out of things, but he loved to understand everything.

“We’ll be going to the pool, but I was told that if you didn’t sleep you won’t be able to go.” I explained.

“Why won’t I be able to go?”

“You’ll be too tired.”

“Where’s Jake?” Jake was his counselor, a warm and sociable guy who looked to be about six foot four.

“Jake’s out taking care of stuff. Why don’t you sleep a little? I’ll wake you when he comes back.” My voice was calm and soothing. I didn't want to irritate him or something.

“Okay!” He instantly rolled over and began to snore exaggeratedly. I turned my attention to the rest of the cabin.

The cabin had two rooms, connected by a large wooden door that squeaked a little when you tried to move it. Eight bunk beds were set neatly within the cabin, with four bunks fitting in each room. The only light came from the two unblinded windows, one in each room, and the air conditioner kept the entire place at a refreshing 68 degrees Fahrenheit. Graffiti and messages left by counselors and campers from past years covered the pale whitish ceiling and tan, laminate wood floor. The only people in the cabin were the cabin staff, our cabin’s campers, and myself. It’s supposed to be my break hour, and the other counselors had left as soon as made sure their campers were in bed. Yet I volunteered to stay behind to keep the campers who were still awake company and tried to get them to lay down and rest. I instead checked the other room. Only Thomas, a child with Down syndrome, was awake, playing on his iPad while sitting on the bunk farthest from the connecting door.

“Look!” Thomas turned the iPad towards me and pointed at the screen. The screen displayed the mobile map of Legoland Windsor, and was centered on something that looked like a pirate ship.

“What is it?” I asked as I came closer.

“I love eating here! Their burgers are so yummy!” He clicked a spot and a small window opened, describing the restaurant.

“That sounds pretty good, but aren’t you tired? You just had a big meal.” I said, concerned.

“No, I’m okay.” He smiled a big smile. His shining eyes seemed to burst out of his glasses.

“Then can you be a little quieter? Everyone else is trying to sleep.” As if right on cue, one of the other campers turned on his bed.

Thomas' eyes widened with understanding. “Okay,” he whispered.

“Thanks.” I turned to leave, but he grabbed the hem of my shirt.

“Don’t go!” he pleaded, looking at me. I took his hand off of my shirt gently and looked at him in the eyes.

“I’m not going far away. I just need to check on my camper to make sure he’s asleep and okay.” I responded.

“Okay.”

I went into the next room, only to see cabin staffer Jake wrestling a naked kid with pale skin onto the bed.

“Matthew, you need to stay in your bed!” he said firmly. Once Matthew was down, Jake covered him up with a blanket.

“Nooo.” Matthew drew out as he tried to throw the blanket off. Jake held it down.

“No, Matthew. You need to keep this on.” Jake’s startling blue eyes and slightly smiling mouth exuded both authority and concern.

“Nooo.” Matthew’s lips quivered and the corners of his lips lowered into a frown. I came over to the other side of the bed and kneeled on the ground.

“Hey, Matthew, can you lay down for a little bit? You need to sleep; your counselor’s really worried about you.”

We were all worried, actually. Matthew hasn’t been sleeping well for the past few days, sleeping at 1 in the morning and waking up four hours later. He hasn’t taken a nap either. We were wondering if he also had ADHD on top of Down syndrome, or if it was a case of insomnia.

“Nooo. Pffffbt.” He stuck his tongue out at me and again tried to take the blanket off.

“Hey, no. You don’t want to be showing that when the others come back, do you?” I argued as I pulled the blanket down.

“Mmmmm.” He groaned, then fell forward, pressing his face into the mattress. I stood up a little and sat on my heels, watching him in case he tries to peel away the blanket again. I subconsciously put my hand on his pale white back. His body was warm to the touch. A memory sparked to life in my brain, and I saw my own mother doing the same thing to me when I was young, rubbing my back and singing lullabies to get me to sleep.

I began to slowly move my hand in circles, lightly pressing down as I rubbed his back and spine. His body seemed to relax a little. As I continued this slow motion, a song came to the mind. I begin to sing quietly,

Amazing grace! How sweet the sound, That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found; Was blind, but now I see.

Matthew’s body made a rumbling sound, as if he was taking a deep breath. I continued to murmur words quietly, maintaining a continuous motion on his back.

’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear the hour I first believed.

My arms and legs were beginning to grow sore as I continued to sit on my haunches and rub his back slowly. But when I stopped to get up, Matthew’s head turned to me. His mouth was slightly open, and his eyes looked up at me as I stretched my legs a little.

“More?” I asked.

His head gave an almost imperceptible nod. I got up, switched sides, and then sat on his bed, using my other arm to rub his back and continued the poem.

Through many dangers, toils and snares, I have already come;
’Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home.

He rumbled again. I kept going, ignoring my sore arms.

The Lord has promised good to me, His Word my hope secures;
He will my Shield and Portion be, as long as life endures.

The rumbling grew more and more consistent. I lifted my hand off of his back as slowly as I could and checked his face. His mouth was still open, but his eyes were completely closed. His nostrils flared slightly as he exhaled. Though, I didn’t understand how he could be so comfortable sleeping folded over his legs like that.

I looked up at Jake, who had climbed onto his bunk. “He’s out,” I whispered.

“Great.” Jake leaned back on his bed. “Let’s not wake him after break; he needs the sleep.”

“Agreed.” I slowly stood up, using the frame of the bunk bed to get up rather than pushing down on the mattress. Matthew didn’t show any sign of waking. I tiptoed to my bunk, which was right next to the connecting door, and climbed onto my sparsely covered mattress. My camper, who was below me, seemed to be snoring. I laid back, stretching my legs and tried to relax as much as possible. Just as I had gotten comfortable on my bed, I heard a mischievous laugh sound out from right under me, and the bunk began to shake.

Oh, goodness... I thought as I sat up and began my descent back to Earth.