An Unexpected Kids Sleep Adventure

Join Andy by his campfire on a quest for a good night's sleep. Along the way, you'll meet a lovely wizard called Ambrose and a slightly strange sorceress called Aerwyn. She will take you for a magical flight, on her pet Griffin called Parthurnax, to carry out a side quest. Are you ready for a wonderful adventure?

This very special binaural recording includes music written and performed by Andy Hobson and Runar Lundvall and immersive sound effects. This track is the perfect way to get to sleep or get back to sleep if you find yourself wide awake in the middle of the night. Your adventure awaits, sweet dreams young traveller.

Transcript

And there you are.

Let's have a look at you.

Yep,

Just as I expected.

I take it you're here for a good night's sleep.

Good.

You've come to the right place.

Please take a place by the fire.

Let's get you a hot drink.

Here you go.

Have a taste of that.

Your camp bed's just over there.

That'll keep you safe from any unwelcome night visitors.

Oh,

And use all the blankets you need.

There's a couple of pillows over there too.

Now rest that weary head of yours.

Just lay down on your back if that's comfortable.

Take a nice deep breath in.

Breathe out.

And close your eyes.

Then tense your whole body for a moment.

And release.

Allowing your whole body to sink down.

And feel your eyes.

Imagine them getting heavier and heavier.

And that heaviness,

That sleepiness spreads all the way through your head,

Like a gentle wave.

And down through your body,

Through your arms,

Your legs,

Your hands and your feet.

For it is written in this starry night that you're going to have a restful sleep.

And so we'll see what this night holds for us.

And if sleep doesn't come easy,

Then that's okay.

There's no need to worry about such things.

Many things in life we can't control.

And this is no different.

So a restful wide awake will do just fine.

And a restful adventure even better.

Now let go a little more and allow your body to sink a little deeper into your camp bed.

That's it.

And know that you are safe and warm.

And this starry night can hold anything that might be troubling you right now.

So send it up into the ether.

And allow alchemy to do the rest.

That's it.

Now we're getting somewhere.

But perhaps we're actually nowhere.

And that's exactly where we need to be.

Oh,

Who's this at such a late hour?

Hmm,

Just as I thought.

It's Ambrose the Kind,

Our resident wizard.

What a pleasant surprise.

What brings you here?

Sorry to drop in on you like this.

I was just passing by and saw your fire.

I couldn't resist.

I was like a moth to a lantern.

Don't worry,

I won't stay for long.

Just a hello.

How do you do?

And Oh,

And who's this?

We have another traveler in search of sleep.

Oh,

We do get a lot of those around here,

Don't we?

I myself have no trouble sleeping.

Slaying dragons and lifting curses is tiring work.

So I'm out like a light as soon as I hit that hay.

Great.

Well,

Could you share any sleep advice?

Of course,

Yes.

The best way to get to sleep is to,

Um,

To,

To go to sleep.

Right.

Anything else?

Oh,

Dear.

That's all I have,

I'm afraid.

Right.

I best be off now.

I think I left my campfire burning.

Goodbye.

See you soon,

Ambrose.

Safe travels.

Sorry about that.

He does like to show up unannounced.

Nice fella,

But not too hot on the sleep tips.

I mean,

Seriously,

All that magic wisdom,

Big white beard,

And that's always got,

I do despair.

Now,

Where were we?

Somewhere in between sleep and awake.

In the realm of the unknown.

And life is like that.

It winds and twists and turns.

And there are secret paths to discover,

You know.

You do know,

Don't you?

That perceived dead end only means that there is a way that you have not discovered yet.

For nothing is set in stone.

Everything is transient,

Or made of jelly,

If you will.

Including you.

Strawberry jelly,

As a matter of fact.

You do like jelly,

Don't you?

Oh,

Well,

You must.

For this is what you are.

And you can be very proud of being jelly.

It's a great leveller,

Too.

Anyway,

How are you there,

My friend?

Let's do a quick check-in.

I always like to make sure that everything is as it should be.

And nothing is as it could be,

Or might be.

Because nothing can be as it isn't,

Or as it was.

So in other words,

Things should be just as they are.

And only the wind will know why I made that so complicated.

Okay,

Let's have a look at you.

Everything seems okay on that side.

Yep,

Everything's good there as well.

Yeah,

That's all looking good.

But we do need to do a little bit of work on your omnibinicular tendrons.

They're only just slightly out of sync.

Luckily,

I have just the thing to bring them back into balance.

So I invite you to take another deep breath in.

Breathe out.

Allow your body to sink a little bit deeper into your camping bed.

And allow these sounds to gently move through your body.

How are you feeling there?

Your omnibinicular tendrons are vibrating at the correct frequency.

This will make your dreams extra magical and vivid.

What we dream of is rarely ordinary.

But it is within the ordinary that our dreams are made possible.

And that's why I invite you to take a deep breath in.

Let your dreams come true.

And so.

.

.

Oh,

What now?

Great,

A griffin.

Of course it's a griffin.

What else could it be?

This always happens when I'm doing sleep work.

It could be a very long night.

Oh,

It's really swirling around in the air.

Steady on.

Oh,

It's Erwin,

Our local sorceress.

She's a good egg,

But a little ringo dingo.

If you ask me,

You'll often find her talking to squirrels.

A few too many potions,

If you know what I mean.

Oh,

Hello,

Erwin.

Erwin,

Traveller,

Traveller,

This is Erwin.

What a nice surprise.

Seriously though,

Have you not got anything better to do tonight?

No spells to work on?

No mates around?

How rude.

I was just passing by and saw your fire.

I couldn't resist.

I really need to put this fire out now.

It's attracting too many strange folk.

Anyway,

I was wondering,

Since I'm here now and your traveller looks pretty wide awake to me,

How about we all go for a ride on Parthenax,

My lovely Griffin?

Sure,

Why not?

I mean,

You've blown all the good work I've done getting our friend to sleep.

Wonderful.

One slight thing I should mention is that he has a broken wing,

So we'll need to stop.

.

.

Whoa there,

Broken wing?

Oh yes,

It's fine.

We'll just need to stop at the night vet.

Oh,

I see what's going on here.

Okay,

Okay,

I didn't want to go on my own.

I get very emotional when my Griffins get injured.

Griffins?

How many do you have?

And how many have you injured?

Erwin?

Well,

I'm trying to join the Great Mystic Guild and they require some pretty fancy flying to get a place.

Let's just say I've had a few crashes.

You know,

The usual trees,

A castle,

A bridge,

Some cows,

A tiny frog.

He wasn't well afterwards.

I'm so sorry,

Bill.

Good grief.

Okay,

Let's just get going.

Are you sure this Griffin is safe to ride?

Yes.

Yes,

I've used some magic to fix it temporarily.

Just get on,

But hold tight.

This might be a bumpy ride.

Okay,

Let's go.

How are you there,

Traveller?

Sorry about all this.

I know you were here for sleep,

But sometimes life sends an unexpected adventure.

Like,

Um,

Going to a night vet to mend a Griffin's broken wing.

On,

Said Griffin,

While praying for your life with a slightly loopy sorceress at the helm.

What could possibly go wrong?

Well,

These are the times to open our wings and just look at this beautiful sky.

This is all yours.

Let's fly.

Here we are.

Let's go.

Actually,

I don't think I need you anymore.

I feel fine now.

You can go.

Oh,

Well,

That's just great.

What?

I just feel better about the whole broken wing situation.

The ride and the fresh air.

A little perspective.

It helped.

Look,

Just walk along Dead End Pass and you'll be home by sunrise.

Okay,

I'll create a magical portal as you're making such a fuss,

You silly goose.

Here we go.

Okay,

I'm done now.

Now,

Where's my vet?

Right,

I hope this thing works.

Come on,

Traveller,

Time to get back to our campfire and get some sleep.

Are you in one piece?

Good.

Now,

Get yourself comfy by the fire again.

Grab yourself another blanket and I'll get some wood for the fire.

It's a little cooler.

That will get this fire roaring like a lion.

Okay,

I think that's it for visitors too.

So it's time to set sail into the land of dreams.

So here's the deal.

You rest and I'll spin the yarn.

Perhaps cast a little magic over this inky night sky.

How does that sound?

Great.

Now,

As I was saying before,

Our last visitor interrupted us.

What we dream of is rarely ordinary,

But it is within the ordinary that our dreams come true.

This is where we find our magic.

You'll find it in the drip of a tap,

A gust of wind,

The crackle of a fire.

It hides in the moments of stillness and silliness,

Peeking out of a brimming mug of tea and leaping from the shutter of a closing door.

It meanders between those first few drops of rain and you'll find it just after the gasp of a yawn when for a moment you forget what you were doing.

It's the braille etched into everything.

Oh,

And then there's our thoughts.

Let them go about their business like a passing chipmunk in the night.

Yes,

There are plenty of chipmunks around these parts.

I can assure you that they're very polite.

Sometimes they like to stick around for a story,

But they always fall asleep and I have to carry them one by one back to their burrows.

It is somewhat inconvenient,

But they are cute and cuddly.

Now,

Where was I?

Ah,

Yes,

And I sense sleep is close now as the wind turns in and the mist drifts along the valley below and to this inky blue sky woven with magic diamonds.

And rest your head on cloud and wonder,

Float gracefully into the great beyond and know that you are safe and the dust will settle.

The wind will drop with a hush,

Candles flicker,

Stories unfold,

Catching the breeze you lift off slowly.

Sweet dreams.