Hello and good evening.
My name is Bill Larson and tonight I'm going to help you and your young ones get a restful night's sleep.
We will begin with a relaxation meditation for you and your young ones,
Followed by a wonderful short story to ease them into their peaceful night's sleep.
Is everybody ready?
Good.
First,
Snuggle into your bed and lie on your back.
Make sure you are comfortable and that everything feels just right.
Next,
We are going to help your whole body relax by doing a big body squeeze.
Take a deep breath in through your nose and at the same time,
Squeeze your whole body tight.
Squeeze your hands into fists,
Tighten your legs and arms,
And screw up your face and make it into a funny,
Funny face.
Now,
As you breathe out through your mouth,
Release the tension and let everything go soft.
Feel as though your arms and legs are soft and floppy,
Like cooked spaghetti floating in the pot.
Make any adjustments you need now so you can be completely comfortable for our quest towards a peaceful sleep.
Notice the feeling of your bed underneath you.
Notice how warm and comfy it is.
Feel the heaviness of your body and imagine the weight of your body sinking down into your fluffy,
Comfy,
Warm bed.
Now,
Imagine that your bed has magically grown wings and can fly.
Imagine you and your bed gently lifting up out of your room and going through your window outside.
See yourself hovering above where you live.
Check out the roof.
You are totally safe and you are warm and happy and you start to drift above your neighborhood and high up into the sky.
What can you see around you?
Perhaps,
Birds are flying past,
Giving you a friendly wave with their wings.
Maybe you see airplanes,
A hot air balloon,
Or even a rocket ship.
What can you see below you?
Rooftops?
Perhaps rivers?
Mountains?
Or even a beach?
Let your imagination wander and take in all the sights.
Now,
Imagine seeing the most beautiful rainbow,
A special rainbow just for you.
Your bed floats so close to that rainbow that you can reach out and touch it.
What does your rainbow feel like to you?
Now,
You and your magic bed drift over to and float through the color red.
Imagine the red of the rainbow moving through you,
Coloring you from the inside out.
What does it feel like to be red?
Picture yourself full of red,
Shining and glowing and bright.
Think about your favorite thing that is red,
A toy,
Food,
Maybe even a flower.
Now,
You leave the color red and fly through the color green.
What kinds of things can you think of that are green?
I know,
Trees,
Grass,
Maybe even a cute little frog.
After you fly through the lush green,
You move through the color blue.
Can you picture the blue of the sky?
Or the color of the ocean?
What about a bowl of delicious blueberries?
Or even your favorite pair of blue jeans?
After the blue,
You and your bed fly through the color yellow.
What kinds of things can you imagine being yellow?
Bananas,
A stick of butter,
A city taxi cab,
Or what about a sunflower?
After you fly through all of the colors,
Choose your very favorite rainbow color.
Imagine you are a blank sheet of paper,
And you can completely color yourself in with your favorite rainbow color.
Pick your favorite pencils or crayons or use paint.
This is your special artwork about you.
Color your whole body,
Your fingers,
Your toes,
Your belly,
And your back.
Even imagine coloring in your hair and your nose.
When you are all done making your special artwork and coloring it in,
It's time to float back down from the sky and into your room to get ready for our good night's story.
Now I want you to notice how you're breathing.
Notice your belly moving up and down with your breath.
Notice the bed underneath you and the blankets covering you,
Making you all cozy and warm.
Your trip over and through your special rainbow is finished for tonight,
But always remember you can go on a rainbow adventure anytime you wish.
Are you ready for our story?
Good.
Our story tonight is the classic tale,
Jack and the Beanstalk,
By Joseph Jacobs.
Once upon a time,
There lived a poor widow and her son,
Jack.
One day,
Jack's mother told him to sell their only cow.
Jack went to the market and on the way,
He met a man who wanted to buy his cow.
Jack asked,
What will you give me in return for my cow?
The man answered,
I will give you five magic beans.
Jack took the magic beans and gave the man the cow.
But when he reached home,
Jack's mother was very angry.
She said,
You fool.
He took away your cow and gave you some beans?
She took the beans and threw the beans out of the window.
Jack was very sad and went to sleep without dinner.
The next day,
When Jack woke up in the morning and looked out of the window,
He saw that a huge beanstalk had grown from his magic beans.
He climbed up the beanstalk and reached a kingdom in the sky.
There lived a giant and his wife.
Jack went inside the house and found the giant's wife in the kitchen.
Jack said,
Could you please give me something to eat?
I am so hungry.
The kind wife gave him bread and some milk.
While he was eating,
The giant came home.
The giant was very big and looked very fearsome.
Jack was terrified and went and hid inside.
The giant cried,
Fee,
Fie,
Foe,
Fum.
I smell the blood of an Englishman.
Be he alive or be he dead,
I'll grind his bones to make my bread.
The wife said,
There is no boy in here.
So the giant ate his food and then went to his room.
He took out his sacks of gold coins,
Counted them,
And kept them aside.
Then he went to sleep.
In the night,
Jack crept out of his hiding place,
Took one sack of gold coins,
And climbed down the beanstalk.
At home,
He gave the coins to his mother.
His mother was very happy,
And they lived well for quite some time.
Jack climbed the beanstalk and went to the giant's house again.
Once again,
Jack asked the giant's wife for food,
But while he was eating,
The giant returned.
Jack leapt up in fright and went and hid under the bed.
The giant cried,
Fee,
Fie,
Foe,
Fum.
I smell the blood of an Englishman.
Be he alive or be he dead,
I'll grind his bones to make my bread.
The wife said,
There is no boy in here.
The giant ate his food and went to his room.
There he took out a hen.
He shouted,
Lay,
And the hen laid a golden egg.
When the giant fell asleep,
Jack took the hen and climbed down the beanstalk.
Jack's mother was very happy with him.
After some days,
Jack once again climbed the beanstalk and went to the giant's castle.
For the third time,
Jack met the giant's wife and asked for some food.
Once again,
The giant's wife gave him bread and milk,
But while Jack was eating,
The giant came home.
Fee,
Fie,
Foe,
Fum.
I smell the blood of an Englishman.
Be he alive or be he dead,
I'll grind his bones to make my bread.
Cried the giant.
Don't be silly.
There is no boy in here,
Said his wife.
The giant had a magical harp that could play beautiful songs.
While the giant slept,
Jack took the harp and was about to leave.
Suddenly,
The magic harp cried,
Help,
Master,
A boy is stealing me.
The giant woke up and saw Jack with the harp.
Furious,
He ran after Jack,
But Jack was too fast for him.
He ran down the beanstalk and reached home.
The giant followed him down.
Jack quickly ran inside his house and fetched an axe.
He began to chop the beanstalk.
The giant fell and was dead.
Jack and his mother were now very rich,
And they lived happily ever after.
Night,
Night,
And sweet dreams.
