Hello, my friend. Welcome to your sleep story. My name is Stephen Dalton, and as always, it's my great privilege to be the voice that you listen to as you go to sleep tonight. In tonight's story, you'll be visiting New York City and having your own private guided tour of the Metropolitan Museum. Just to say, thank you as always for your comments. As you know by now, I love to read them. Also, don't forget, if you want to avoid ads from upcoming videos, YouTube provides a timer. You can find it u
nder Settings, General, and Remind me when it's bedtime. Now, before tonight's story, let's do the relaxation session. We'll do a countdown tonight. I'll count from 10 down to 1, and as I do, allow yourself to let go, more and more. 10. Feel yourself supported by the bed beneath you. Feel that support going deeper than just your bed. Feel the earth beneath you. Feel the solidity of that. The comfort offered by that. 9 You are safe. If your eyes aren't closed already, allow them to gently close.
8 Allow my voice to be your constant friend. You don't have to do anything now. Just enjoy the picture that I paint for you with my voice tonight. 7. You deserve this moment. You deserve sleep. You deserve rest. 6. Noticing any tension now. Anything that's lingering. Maybe you're holding it in your feet. Maybe your face. Let it go now. 5. Think upon your body with compassion. Your body deserves rest. Those hands. Those feet. Those legs. They've worked hard for you today. Let them have their rest
now. 4. Remember, there is a constant peace within all of us. Allow me to share my peace with you tonight and allow yourself to see that peace that lives within you. 3. The day is done now. Whatever has been, has been. Whatever will be, will be. It's time to let go. 2. Starting to let your imagination become alive now. 1. Allowing me to take you into tonight's sleep story. You are in New York City. It's a rainy night. The rain falls from the heavens. It falls hard on the streets. And you stand,
well-wrapped up, under your umbrella. As you make your way across the street now, walking with the crowds, enjoying this moment, enjoying that you are in one of the greatest cities in all the world. This is the place where so many great lives have passed through. And you are here now, on this rainy, cozy night. And the best part of it is, tonight you are going to the Metropolitan Museum, otherwise known as the Met. You arrive in through the grand doors. There's no one here, apart from a smiling
guide, called Sarah. Tonight, Sarah is your friend. She is going to show you around this magnificent place. She has a plan for you, to make your night very special. You feel immediately happy in her presence. Perhaps it's her welcoming smile and energy that make you feel safe. Sarah tells you that this great institution has been in existence from the 1870s, when a group of Americans were inspired by the Parisians and decided to open a national institution for the American people. This place hou
ses great art, ancient artifacts, and all manner of wonders. And tonight, it's all yours to discover. You know, us humans are at our best when we are curious. Take a deep breath now and allow yourself to be ready, to be curious. The first stop on your tour with Sarah is a Van Gogh painting called "Irises". Sarah stands in front of it with you and tells you to let the hues of purple and the swirls of the brush strokes to pull you in. As you look closer, it's almost as if the irises start to sway
gently. The bursts of yellow and green in the background create a mesmeric energy. Maybe you can smell the freshness of the flowers. Hear the rustle of their leaves and maybe you find your own thoughts slowing down. Matching the tranquil, repetitive motion of Van Gogh's brush strokes. Perhaps you imagine the moment this was painted. Where was the great man standing? As he created this beauteous picture. What was the world like that he inhabited? It was a different world to ours, that's for sure.
It's time to move on. You walk with Sarah through the great halls of the museum. Everything around you catches your eye. Sarah takes you to an intricately carved jade sculpture from ancient China. It's a small piece, yet it seems to contain a world within it. Sarah tells you that jade is highly prized in Chinese culture, both for its beauty and its symbolism. You look closer at the sculpture of a little person. You imagine how this sculpture has travelled for thousands of years. To be here now.
Maybe you imagine the hands that must have carved this tiny masterpiece and you can see the world that they inhabited. The smells that person smelled, the sounds they heard. Now, you move on and soon you are standing in front of an ancient Egyptian sarcophagus. Notice the hieroglyphs, Sarah says. And even without touching them, you almost sense the texture of the carved stone. The etched out stories reaching out to you across millennia and beyond. These artifacts are so old that they could almo
st come from a different planet. The world that they were created in was so very different to our own. But at the same time, there is something universally human about all of this. And in a way, maybe when you look at these artifacts, you are reminded that we are more similar than different. Even to our ancient ancestors. Maybe you imagine ancient Egypt, the pyramids being built, people sailing along the Nile. Now, Sarah takes you to a 19th century American landscape painting which captures the
untamed beauty of the Hudson River Valley. It's like the painting almost invites you into its world. You can hear the river. Maybe you feel the atmosphere of this place. It evokes a simpler, simpler place. It evokes a simpler place. It's your time. And a connection with nature that feels like a deep inhale and exhale for your soul. May you continue your tour. Becoming more and more immersed in this curious state. Becoming more and more separated from all that you know. You can relax here. You wa
nder into a room filled with medieval armour. Sarah tells you that you're stepping into a world that witnessed knights and chivalry. As you approach a suit of armour, it's like you can hear the galloping of the horses. As the knights who wore this armour sat atop those noble animals. You look at the craftwork. And perhaps you dwell on the fact that even though this armour was made of the people of the world, even though this armour was made 800, a thousand years ago maybe, the humans who created
it were so clever, were so skilled, that the world was so beautiful. It's wonderful really that every generation learns from the last. Every generation develops on the ideas of the previous one. It reminds us that we need each other to prosper, to move forward to become the world's most important. Next, Sarah takes you to an area devoted to indigenous American art. You see the rich colours and intricate patterns of a Navajo rug hanging elegantly on the wall. The weaving is a form of storytellin
g, Sarah tells you. Sarah, maybe you can almost feel the fibres between your fingers. Maybe you can see that world, that beautifully simple world, that the indigenous Americans inhabited, that wide open landscape. Breathe it in. Breathe it in. You move on. And you talk with Sarah about the fact that it kind of feels like every piece in the Metropolitan Museum holds its own universe, each one beckoning you to step in and experience its unique resonance. This museum at night time turns into a spac
e where time doesn't feel like it exists, where the distant past and the distant past are the same. The distant past and the immediate present coexist in a harmonious dance. Allow yourself to feel the peace offered by this place the good intentions of this place. All of this is done for good. [Silence] Next you move into another room that displays timepieces from various eras. [Silence] From sundials to ornate renaissance clocks. Time has always fascinated humans, Sarah says. [Silence] Perhaps y
ou once again are amazed by how advanced our ancestors really were. Sure, they didn't have planes or cars, but they were able to make amazing things. And this place just brings that home to you. Perhaps a meditative tranquility washes over you, allow yourself to accept it. For you are soaking in the beauty of human ingenuity. Next you move to a room that exhibits old clothing. Not just any old clothing, you see, but beautiful, ornate, detailed, fascinating clothing. You're struck by the craftsma
nship of an 18th century gown. This gown is 300 years old. Its intricate lace work and detailed embroidery just show how many hours of labor and how much love was poured into it. Where was this worn? Who wore it? Was it worn at a grand dance? Maybe you can see that world now. People dancing in a beautiful unison, feeling the freedom of what it is to move with ease in front of and in rhythm with other human beings. Next you look at a display of 1920s flapper dresses. They shimmer with sequence an
d fringe. This was the roaring 20s, Sarah says. Fashion became a language of liberation and self-expression. You close your eyes briefly. Maybe you can hear the distant echo of jazz through the ages. Maybe you can feel the exuberance and the hope that divined that era. Now you look at another two interesting pieces. Sarah tells you these were pieces worn by icons. Each one capturing a moment in time. The first is a classic black dress that was worn by Audrey Hepburn. It embodies an era of elegan
ce and simplicity. Maybe she wore it on a film set. Maybe to a premiere. Next you look at a costume that belonged to David Bowie. Maybe he wore this in a live performance in front of thousands of people. You think of what it is to preserve these things. To let us see into world's past. To let us understand the line that we continue. To let us feel connection to who and why and what we are. Now Sarah walks you to a very grand area of the museum. Charles Engelhard Kord. This beautiful square in th
e museum has an astonishingly beautiful glass roof. And here is where Sarah leaves you. Under this amazing roof to sit in peace for a while and to enjoy the sound of the rain as it falls on the glass roof above. Allow yourself now to contemplate what you have seen tonight. To feel a deep inner peace knowing that when humans work together we are capable of such great things of such kindness of such shared joy of such insight and knowledge and knowledge of such ingenuity and of such common good.
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