Confessions of a sleep barker

I'm not sleeping when you hear me quiet bark in the middle of the night.

You think it's cute when I bark in my sleep, so you tell Dad, "Did you hear that? Nima's dreaming again." Or Dad, you tell Mom, "Nima's barking in here sleep again. I think she barks more in her dreams than she does when she's awake." Only I'm not dreaming or asleep. I just want to know if you're still awake. Sometimes I just want to hear your voices -- they make me warmer.

Sometimes I'm in the best bed in my house that I am allowed to be in. It is all the way upstairs. It is SOOO SOFT and I LOVE IT SOOO MUCH! But nobody else spends a lot of time up there. So that means I either have to lay down on the floor where everyone else is, or go be by myself. I don't want to be alone. But being on the floor all of the time is too much. Sometimes I pretend to bark in my sleep when I'm up there. Then I know that you hear me when you say your words and I know that you still know about me. Then I don't feel so far away anymore.

But sometimes I pretend to bark in my sleep when we're all in the sleeping room downstairs, too. I know we're all close when we're in the sleeping room together because I can hear you using your sleep-breaths... especially Dad. Then I'm doing it just to see if you're all the way asleep. If you are, then I can go to check on the gate upstairs because sometimes you leave it open when you want me to check on things upstairs for you... I like to check the garbage for stinky things or look in on the food situation in the pantry for you.

Sometimes I do fall asleep on the floor when we're sitting together upstairs. Then I wake up and I pretend to bark in my sleep again. I know you're there already. And I don't feel too far away. But, it sounds like you like it when I bark in my sleep. So I do it for you. Maybe it makes you warm inside too.