It is the season of Lent. It seems so early and totally snuck up on me. I have given something up for Lent for years and years, as long as I can remember actually. When I was little my mom always told us (my sister and me) to give up gum. So we did. Even when I stopped going to church for a long time, I still gave something up. It is one of those things that gets ingrained in you and you just can’t change it.
So, what am I giving up this year?
Well, I actually don’t “give” things up so to speak. My nun friend once told me that it’s not really about giving something up, it’s doing something that makes you closer to God. And sometimes it gets confusing because if I give up things like chocolate or sugar or sweets – is that really giving up something for Lent or is it just an excuse to give up something to lose weight? Who knows. I guess it can be both.
^^^^^That’s my me and my nun friend^^^^^^
One year I gave up biting my nails. I was actually successful, which is amazing. But then I started up again. Lucky for me I randomly quit biting my nails last Thanksgiving. I guess after 30ish years of eating my nails, it was time to stop.
So, here are my Lenten promises:
- Listen more. I really need to start listening to people more. I have so many thoughts running through my head that sometimes I am thinking things when I should be listening. Or I am thinking how I’m going to respond or what I can say next. Really, I should just listen.
- Stop complaining about money. This is a big one. I always feel so broke. However, there are so many other people out there who make less money than I do and I need to just get on with my life. I should be thankful for what I have. So I can’t afford everything I want. Not very many people can. We can pay our bills, buy some food, and take care of our son. That’s all that’s important.
Seriously, who is more important than this little dude???????? - I will not eat store-bought cookies. That is my “normal” thing that I will give up. I can eat homemade cookies because homemade cookies contain lots of love and we need all the love we can get. However, store-bought cookies contain junk and no love whatsoever – so who needs them. Even if Chips Ahoy Chewies taste oh so delicious.
Good thing I only gave up store-bought cookies because my Mom sent me these yummy Valentine’s Day cookies. Can you believe that she only sent me three??? What were you thinking Mother??? Ok – so maybe there were more and I ate a bunch before taking the picture….
So, those are my Lenten promises.
And here’s our Ravens fan – go Ravens! I know it’s a bit late, but I didn’t get a chance to upload my photos earlier. And yes, we always buckle him in, we just took the photo before putting on his seatbelt.
Do you give anything up for Lent?
What are your favorite cookies???
Haha! I completely bought that your mom only sent three cookies! It sounds like something I would do. I love that you're giving up store bought cookies. That would kill me!
ReplyDeleteBy the way, your son is stinking adorable!
Hi Jane!! You are too sweet! I've missed you!! How are you???? I hope everything has worked our well and that you are happy. I think about you all the time.
DeleteI think my mom sent 6 cookies. So I had already eaten half. I'm sure she kept a few for herself and then sent some to my sisters. Six is plenty too, since my husband doesn't like sweets so much I get to eat them all!
Homemade sugar cookies= love! I love frosted sugar cookies. I also love chocolate crinkles (which I just made). Sadly my oven psyched me out, so only 2 of the batches turned out properly. I also love oatmeal raisin. I should just admit it, I love all cookies. I can't even pick a favorite.
ReplyDeleteI haven't given up anything for Lent, it wasn't a tradition I was raised with. On a non-Lenten basis I've given up caffeine & soda after 5:00pm. Of course I break that rule if I go out to eat, but as I never go out to eat down here, I haven't had any trouble :) If I had to pick something to consciously substitute with God, I'd pick trashy websites, like Gawker, TMZ and the Daily Mail, or those ridiculous articles on yahoo. It would be good to redirect that energy to something more meaningful!
I think you're a great listener. You listen to me for hours & hours. And feel free to discuss broke-ness whenever you'd like in my presence. It's a big stress these days for most of us, and troubles are for sharing with friends. You always share wonderful happy stuff too. It may be wrong of me to break behavior down based on gender, but I think as women we bond by sharing our complaints and stories and fiascos. If you were just super-positive all the time, with never a critical word, that would be strange, and I'd wonder when you were moving to Tibet. Or a cult compound.
You are funny Sarah - caffeine and soda after 5pm?? I would surely be awake for hours if I had caffeine after 10am. I switched to decaf almost a year and a half ago and I don't think I'll ever go back. It is so much better not worrying about getting my caffeine fix every morning. And being able to drink 6 cups of coffee a day without getting completely wired.
DeleteAnd thank you for saying I'm a good listener. I still think I could work on it a bit. Giving up trashy internet sites is a good idea. I don't visit those very often, but sometimes MSN sucks me in and I read way too many articles.
And Tibet isn't in my immediate future!