Night owls and the charm of the night

It is considered “normal” for people to get up early to do their daily work and then sleep at night. However, it is increasingly common to find people of all types who prefer to do the opposite: sleep during the day and be awake at night. Night lovers are of two types: there are those who cannot sleep before midnight and those who only close their eyes when dawn appears.

In general, it is a matter of preference. It’s not that they are forced to stay awake; They simply find the nighttime hours more inspiring, stimulating, or energetic. They call them “owls” or simply “night owls” and some myths have been woven around them..

Among famous night owls there are from presidents, such as Barak Obama or Winston Churchill, to artists such as Marcel Proust or Kafka, to criminals such as Jack “The Ripper” or Adolf Hitler.

The unique charm of the night

The night is full of magic and this is proven by the countless number of poems that have been written for the moon, the stars and the nocturnal atmosphere. The night is also the natural setting for mystery and love. From day to night, without a doubt, there is a strong change of pace. While The day is a time of agitation, noise and tumult, the night gives rise to silence, solitude and pause.

Why do some people prefer the night? Actually, there are many reasons. The tranquility of the night hours facilitates work that requires high concentration. As there are fewer stimuli, you can work almost without interruptions. The silence and less frenetic rhythm of the night hours also facilitates a greater connection with the inner world.. That’s why so many artists are night owls.

However, it is not always such positive reasons that lead us to succumb to the charm of the night. There is also the case of insomniacs, of people who suffer from some form of anguish and cannot sleep at night, no matter how hard they try. Or the case of those who have great difficulties adapting to the social environment that surrounds them. For some people, the night becomes an escape from real life.

In these cases, the night is not a source of tranquility, but rather a bubble where the individual is protected from all the demands of daily life. For one reason or another They feel unable to face life and so they take refuge in the shadows.

Theories about night owls

Myths and legends are woven around night owls, although there are also several investigations about it. It is said, for example, that night owls are more intelligent than other people.. This statement was initially derived from the large number of artists, intellectuals and famous figures who have fallen in love with the charm of the night.

A study carried out at the University of the Sacred Heart, in Milan (Italy), indicates that Night owls tend to be more creative. His unconventional way of living influences the construction of an original way of seeing different issues.

For its part, the University of Madrid carried out a study on intelligence with a thousand adolescents, night owls and day owls. They concluded that night owls had a higher IQ, although day owls performed better on academic exams.

However, Dr. Peter Jonason, a psychologist at the Western Sydney University, indicates that Night owls are more likely to have what he calls the “Dark Triad of Personality.”. A set of personality traits, among which narcissism, Machiavellianism and psychopathic tendencies stand out. In other words, for Dr. Jonason, night owls are essentially conspirators and manipulators.

From a biological point of view, a study published in the “Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism” indicates that night owls are more likely to contract diabetes. Apparently, also Daytime sleeping habits increase cholesterol, triglyceride and body fat levels. Furthermore, the lack of morning sun could affect the organic difficulty in fixing calcium in the bones.

Despite everything, nocturnal birds feel like fish in water when shadows appear. In the wee hours of the morning, great decisions have been made for humanity and wonderful works of art have been created. The night, with its charm, has its own inhabitants.

The night hides great events

The Trojan horse. Mythology says that the Greeks used a large wooden horse to besiege the city of Troy. The strategy was simple but very effective. The Greeks gave Troy a huge horse made of wood as a symbol of the end of the war. Troy accepted the gift and introduced it into its fortification. However, What the Trojans did not know was that the horse was full of Greek soldiers who would wait until nightfall to occupy the city..stars shine. Although the stars shine 24 hours a day, we can only see them at night. Except the sun, the only one we can only see during the day. When everything is calm and there is no light pollution, we can observe the sky and see it with complete clarity. For many mystics and great teachers it is a metaphor for our mind. Only when our mind is calm, can we see ourselves.The halloween night. This celebration carries a lot of history. However, all traditions agree that the night of October 31 is the time when the living and the dead are closest.

Image courtesy of Megatruh, Pascal Campion