The Rose Gardens of the Summer Castle,
A Dreamspace bedtime story read by Ashley Lord.
Welcome to your cozy story this evening.
It's so good that you're here,
Settling down your day.
Take a few more moments to make sure the body is really comfortable.
Tucking yourself in,
Allowing the shoulders to rest underneath you.
Perhaps you deepen the breath in through the nose and out of the mouth.
Maybe you sigh a couple times and this helps you to relax a little bit more.
There's nothing left to do.
This is your space to settle and relax.
As you prepare the body for rest tonight,
Just trusting that the mind will start to settle,
You can allow these words,
This story,
And my voice to wash over you,
And if you drift in and out,
That's okay.
You don't have to catch every word,
Allowing yourself moment by moment to drift into your quiet rest.
We begin this story now.
It takes place in a beautiful garden.
The eyes are heavy,
The jaw softens.
The Rose Gardens of the Summer Castle,
In the quiet of summer when the days stretch long and unhurried,
There is a castle that rests at the edge of a wide green plain.
It does not rise sharply against the sky,
But rather it settles into the landscape,
As though it has always belonged here.
You sense that the stones have been shaped patiently by time,
And the beautiful castle is resting among the grasses and wildflowers.
The castle's walls are pale and warm beneath the sun.
Their surfaces have softened over many seasons,
Edges rounded,
Lines smoothed by wind and rain.
The climbing roses trace the stone in gentle paths.
These beautiful roses notice their colors,
Their blooms open and relaxed,
Petals unfurling without effort,
As the air carries their scent lightly,
Just present the gentle,
Subtle smell of rose,
But just enough sweetness to relax you.
Around the castle,
Summer moves slowly,
Tall grasses sway in wide,
Easy motions,
And bees drift from bloom to bloom.
Unconcerned with direction,
They dance and move and drift.
Somewhere nearby,
Water flows,
A narrow stream winding through smooth stones.
Its sound is quiet and continuous.
That peaceful sound of water and relaxation.
The castle has stood through many summers like this.
It knows the rhythm of warm evenings,
Where the sky is vast and when the stars linger,
Creating a blanket of quiet light in the sky.
The windows of the castle are set deep into the stone.
They have that warm,
Cozy feeling.
They frame the views of open fields and distant trees.
When viewers gaze out,
All they feel is that quiet relaxation that beautiful places bring.
Inside the curtains,
They gently blow and fall,
Peaceful and serene.
Within the walls,
The castle remains cool.
It has that beautiful,
Cool feeling.
Stone floors,
Like they hold the memory of the shade of a beautiful tree.
As you walk from the grass and the sun into that cool feeling,
The stones of the castle hold this essence of summer coolness.
The hallways of the castle curve gently,
Leading from room to room.
The beautiful skylight enters softly,
Sliding across the floors,
The light of moonbeams climbing the walls.
There is a quiet presence of space as the clouds make their slow passage across the night sky.
Beyond an arched doorway,
The castle gardens begin.
The path into the garden is narrow at first,
Lined with low hedges and pale stones.
Its sound is soft and familiar,
And fades again into silence.
As the path of the gardens open,
The rose reveals itself.
One single rose at the center of the rose garden.
You feel the heart of the garden as you then continue to walk where rows upon rows of roses extend outwards in gentle curves.
And even the faintest touches of gold.
The roses grow freely here.
Their stems arch naturally,
Their petals fall occasionally.
Resting on the ground below.
Never gathered.
But to be recycled by the earth,
In this continuous flow of beautiful life.
The air in the garden is warm,
But balanced,
Carrying the scent of rose blooms,
Fresh earth,
And distant water.
Stone benches rest beneath flowering arches.
Their surfaces are smooth,
Warmed by the roses and that sweetness of the night sky.
A narrow stream winds gently through the garden's edge.
Its water clear and steady.
Small stones beneath the surface catch the moonlight,
Shifting gently as the current moves past.
And fireflies hover above the water.
The garden holds no sharp lines.
Everything curves.
Everything softens as the paths wander.
Inviting slow movement pauses in this beautiful garden under the night sky.
At the far end of the garden,
A wide lawn opens beneath an old tree.
Its branches stretch outward,
Casting patterned shade on the grass below.
Here in this space,
The castle feels distant.
Yet still present and strong.
Holding steady,
Its towers visible above the rose-covered walls.
The roses watch quietly as the beautiful night sky becomes dim.
As the roses seem to darken slightly,
Colors growing richer in the cold.
Inside the castle,
You notice the lanterns beginning to glow.
It reaches the garden only faintly,
Mixing.
Crickets sing their evening song.
A pattern that repeats itself like a lullaby for the roses.
Petals close slightly.
The garden still holds that gentle warmth of the summer air.
The stream continues its quiet movement.
And a few more stars appear slowly above the towers.
The stars reflect faintly in the water below.
All of the gardens around the castle slow down.
The roses do not ask anything of the night.
The summer night in the rose garden is gentle.
Quiet of the garden is felt.
Nothing is required.
Nothing is asked.
The roses rest.
The castle remains.
