Once upon a time there was a little girl named Zhenya. She considered herself quite grown up because she already went to school — to first form. Which meant she could, like adults, go to bed very late.
Evening — the most interesting time: homework is done, nothing prevents you from diving into the world of games, watching cartoons, drawing — in short, doing all sorts of different things. Zhenya couldn't understand why when the most intriguing moment came in the game, her mum made her go to bed. It was so unfair!
Zhenya, it's already late — nine o'clock. You need to brush your teeth and go to bed. You have school tomorrow, — her mum reminded her insistently.
Oh mum, I'm not tired at all. The most interesting part is just starting! — the girl exclaimed indignantly. — And why do people sleep anyway? I don't want to and I'll manage perfectly well without sleep.
Zhenya, how can you not understand, — her mum insisted, — at night your growing body not only rests, but also builds up strength and energy. This is necessary so you can spend the next day feeling cheerful and energetic. Because you're not getting enough sleep, you'll have poor marks at school, you'll remember less important and useful information. Or you might even let your friends down when they need you!
Oh mum! I get plenty of sleep and I know lots of things! — Zhenya persisted. — Winter holidays will be here soon, that's when I'll catch up on my sleep!
And so it happened every evening. Mum would try to persuade her daughter to get into bed, but the girl would refuse and drag things out. She would go to bed and fall asleep late.
Time flew by. The New Year holidays passed, winter ended. Spring was taking over outside.
Zhenya, as before, argued with her mum in the evenings, who made her go to bed on time.
One day at school they decided to hold sports competitions in which Zhenya's class and children from other schools were to participate.
Zhenya, you have competitions at school tomorrow. I'm reminding you — you're taking part in the relay race, — her mum said to the girl, — so you need to go to bed early today and get a good sleep. So that tomorrow you have the strength not just to run, but to win!
Mum, I always have plenty of strength, you'll see, I'll come in first, — her daughter boasted.
The girl didn't go to bed early. She had to finish watching an interesting cartoon, then finish drawing a picture. And she was waiting for a new issue of her favourite magazine, which she absolutely had to read that evening. The girl only fell asleep near midnight.
In the morning, when the alarm went off, Zhenya didn't really want to get up, her eyes kept closing by themselves, and she kept drifting back to sleep again and again.
Mum had already opened the curtains, and the room became brighter.
Zhenya had no choice but to get up and go to the bathroom to wash. The girl had no strength to get dressed at all, she only dreamed of getting back into her soft warm bed and falling asleep.
At school everyone was bustling about. Even the teacher, whom the children always saw in a dress, was wearing a sports suit. She was planning to go to the stands to support the class during the competition. Four schools were taking part in the relays, and everyone wanted to win.
The PE teacher Ekaterina Alekseyevna gathered the participants in the competition, among whom was Zhenya, and gave advice on how to properly complete the tasks at the stadium.
Zhenya, is everything alright with you? — Ekaterina Alekseyevna asked, seeing the sour expression on the sleep-deprived girl's face. — You seem quite sad.
Everything's fine! — Zhenya answered reluctantly. — I'm just nervous.
And so the games began: children pulled a rope, jumped in sacks, and then came the relay race with a hoop.
Zhenya's team was in second place. The children needed to win the last race to come out on top.
The girl had no strength left at all, she was very tired. In the deciding relay she had to run around a cone with a baton in her hand, come back and pass the baton to the next player.
When the baton ended up in Zhenya's hand, she couldn't take a single step — she collapsed from exhaustion.
The girl was picked up and taken to the medical room. The nurse examined her carefully and called her mum.
Your daughter is completely healthy, but she is severely exhausted, — the nurse said, — she needs to get a good sleep, and she'll be energetic again.
Zhenya's teacher was present in the office, and she too was very worried about the girl's health. She looked reproachfully at her mum.
Why don't you put your child to bed on time, especially before such important events? — Ekaterina Alekseyevna asked sternly.
Forgive me, — Zhenya said quietly, — mum isn't to blame, it's because of me that our team lost today. I didn't want to go to bed yesterday, even though mum insisted.
Zhenya understood that her mum wasn't just trying to persuade her to go to bed on time every evening for no reason. Today she had let her classmates down.
If she doesn't go to bed at the right time, soon there will be bad marks in her school book, because her body won't have the strength for studying.
