Innovative Lent Suggestions

[Spem in alium]

28 minutes ago, Amppax said:

That is a penance I could not do, without a miraculous infusion of some pretty extraordinary graces. Best of luck with that. 

Thank you. It's been very difficult -- especially on public transport where I usually like to be occupied with doing something, rather than simply sitting. But at the same time, I've really recognised more and more the richness of the Scriptures and how much can be taken from them. 

[Gabriela]

Man, I wish giving up reading were a penance for me, cuz I would love nothing more than to not read for 40 days!

[NadaTeTurbe]

23 hours ago, Spem in alium said:

o challenging myself not to take books with me when I travel by public transport, but rather to sit and pray, reflect, or simply be with God. The only real reading I've been doing has been for my study. This has actually been a challenge, because I love to read and generally go through books like there's no tomorrow.

I really admire you for this penance... I have 2 to 4 hours of public transport by days, and I've recently realized that listening to music stress me more than anything - I don't really listen. But even with this realization, I can't stop myself to listen to music. It's a reflex, and I feel like I'm missing something when I don't. "Not doing anything" in public transport is so hard. I pray the rosary, and I pray the Heart of Jesus for people around me, but when I still have one, two, three, more hours, I always end up doing things (reading, listening to music, sewing). 

[Spem in alium]

When I travel by public transport, it's often a 3-hour round trip. I find in that period I am often driven to be doing something - usually reading - as a kind of diversion or distraction, or simply to fill time. I remember that a couple of weeks ago when I was travelling I actually felt relieved I had a book in my bag. I tried it last week and it was so hard. 

I hope I'll also be able to extend this to other periods of my day when I seem to be most easily distracted and prone to wasting time. Or even just when I'm waiting. Often when I have to wait for someone or something, I find myself reading or doing something to use the time. These last couple of weeks I've tried deliberately to get myself to places earlier so that I have to wait -- and I try and push myself not to read, but to pray or just spend time in silence and stillness. It's a challenge but I pray I can persevere. 

[Gabriela]

All this talk of filling "down time" reminds me what the sisters I interviewed said about "doing vs being". We're so driven to always be doing something these days, to "being productive". It really is an obsession, a drive that controls us.

I'm glad there are people on here who are aware of that, cuz most people in the world think this is crazy talk when I bring it up.

[beatitude]

I didn't succeed in giving up complaining for Lent, but it did make me aware of just how much I complain, and determined to fight this tendency. As I can't exactly celebrate Easter by complaining extra, I need to do everything I can to cultivate a spirit of gratitude, and kill the complaints off at their root. Which is why, when my mum gave me a baked potato of very dubious texture at dinner tonight (enough to make me doubt it's potato-ness - it was revolting), I told her everything was lovely when she asked how my food had been. And she went, "Oh good. I wasn't sure you'd like that potato. It's one of those frozen ones out of a box. There are three more for you in the freezer."

It's just as well I exempt Christ from my complaints embargo, because my post-meal thanksgiving consisted of an indignant, "Now look at what you have done." If I'm ever canonised, and people want to publish a book of my prayers, then someone please make sure that one goes in the book - it sums up my relationship with God in seven words. Now I have landed myself with three extra portions of penance, in Eastertide too.

I hope everyone else has had an equally blessed and hopefully more pleasant conclusion to their Lenten observance.