Agriculture

Do you “spoon” when you sleep with a spouse or bed partner? Outside, the shutters may be banging against the house in the stiff western wind; the windows encased in white frost; the wind chill at minus 20. But inside, with another body close against yours under the covers, a warmth builds quickly. It’s as if the heat of the body is amplified by being bounced back and forth, the way mirrors can refract light and back and forth to intensify heat and light fires. And the benefits of spooning go beyond heat, to feelings of intimacy and protection. You might even feel secure enough to surrender that axe you keep next to your bed to dispatch intruders. Spooning involves adjustments and compromises. If you’re the big spoon, does your bottom arm comfortably fit under your partner’s head or torso? If you’re the little spoon, is the hand of the top arm resting where you like having it? If one of you tosses, does the other turn, and how do you negotiate the frequency? You are surrendering considerable individual a