The Shaman's Hour

I would say the darkest hour is not just the one before the dawn, its the dawn itself. What other time is there when one is completely alone and in silence, the mind in reverie, quiet yet excited, than at 2am to 4am? Its almost like the rest of the world has shrunk away into an entirely different universe, or that your body and soul has been shifted to a new one. In this semi-concious state there is a new and different conciousness, one that needs no invitation and no chemical intervention to bring it through the door of being. There is only a slight awareness of proper social attitudes, but the inventive imagination is more or less free to take on whatever ideas occur to it and give them the worth they deserve without interference from outside forces.
So next time you cant sleep, value that time; if you get any ideas, write them down. If they look silly in the cold light of day, when the rest of the world has woken up and is bearing down on you, just quietly put them away somewhere until the next night...