The Travelodge hotel chain recently took a poll, asking people what they most liked to do in bed. Sex was fourth behind reading, watching TV, and sleeping.
Our cultural concentration on sex and the association of bed with that activity can lead us to lose sight of the simple but vital truth that bed is primarily a place of relaxation and sleep. Indeed, the use of the euphemisms “slept with†and “went to bed with†for sexual activity with someone are quite misleading. Many people do not engage in sexual relationships. Everyone must sleep to survive. Furthermore, lying in a bed with someone or sleeping in close quarters do not – as sexual relations can – lead to pregnancies or sexually transmitted diseases. Sex is a rather energetic activity; sleeping is the most passive activity we have but the one that replenishes us for the others.
Reading and watching TV are nice things to do in bed. I would like to add listening to stories on cassette or CD and, especially, listening to audio drama and comedy of the sort that once made up the glory of old-time radio in its heyday, as enjoyable activities suitable for bed. Programs created as audio entertainment, complete with appropriate sound effects, can be a wonderful way to unwind. I love to listen to them before falling into slumber.
Whether celibate or sexually active, much of human life is spent in bed. At both ends of life, infancy and old age, a bed is often our primary setting.
Bed: what a beautiful and beautifully basic invention.
