It’s the middle of February; -22C. Too cold to go outside. Too cold for anything much, really.
Stuck at home, it’s the perfect time to do more purging. And seeing as we’re in the first days of Lent, it really is doubly wonderful to clear your life of the excesses that gather; particularly when all we want to do is cocoon amidst comfy, cozy things.
I missed a week or more of writing, and truth be told, I’m not even supposed to be focusing on purging anymore; I really should be moving onto my next challenge — “small things with great love.” But last week (and part of this) was spent in production; i.e., readying the Record for the printer. And when that happens, I have tunnel vision. All other non-essential tasks fade away and I become hopelessly, utterly consumed by the book. Happily, it went off to the printer late Wednesday night and I’m once again able to come up for air.
That being the case, it’s also time to start preparing for Easter; which, of course, means observing Lent. Google has been doing a great job of finding me endless lists of “things to give up for Lent.” Many of them have to do with clearing out our homes; figuratively making room for the wonder that is to come. So, I thought I’d share some of them with you here.
This one fits rather nicely into my purging-and-donating theme. It’s all about filling a bag of stuff every day for the 40 days of Lent. I know I’m a couple of days behind, but the weekend is upon us, so I can play catch-up.
These two articles aren’t about Lent, but they certainly challenge us to re-think what’s necessary in life. Both are about families who went the extreme route and purged everything — except 100 belongings each. I find this inspiring—and kind of stress-inducing!
And while this site isn’t coming from a Christian perspective (it’s written by activists deeply troubled by the state of our natural world), their “40 Days of Giving” list is truly beautiful. It includes things like give a meal, give your talents, give a book, give respect, give an offering, give away fear, give your story. Grab a coffee and give it a read.
I also stumbled upon a few other approaches that help us prepare in ways that don’t involve giving up chocolate:
On her facebook page, Rev. Margaret Mullin, minister at Place of Hope Presbyterian Church in Winnipeg, entreated friends to do this: “Instead of giving something up for Lent this year why not take up the habit of doing random acts of kindness? Watch for an opportunity every day of Lent to do something kind for someone else.”
In that vein, here’s an excellent article about Pope Francis’ idea for Lent. He argues that whatever is given up should benefit others, and that what we should truly be fasting from is indifference.
And for a prayer focus, please read Rachel Held Evans’ post on Lent.
I hope you find something useful in at least one of these. Confession: Though I was raised Catholic, I’ve never been very good at observing Lent. Maybe it’s time to change that. I’m thinking it may help me shift my focus and figure out my approach for my next challenge (which I really should get going on!), “Small things with great love.” (Read all about it in the March issue of the Record!)
Until next time.
