GRATEFUL FOR LENT!

This post comes with gratitude to  Robyn post http://essenceofafamily.weebly.com, which inspired me to write this post.

This week we celebrated Ash Wednesday, we got up early and went for mass; this year my daughter Maria Dorothy chose to come with us for morning mass, and even was ready to fast for the morning.  I am impressed with my daughter for the choice she has made, even though I always felt one must go beyond fasting and practising rituals.  Every year David is very particular about Lent and he will make sure that we fast, pray and take vegetarian food for all the forty days.

I have not been particular and over the last few  years, as I felt that Lent must be  an opportunity to become a better person, to give up all those qualities that hinders us from being loving and harmonious. I also realize that improving ourselves and becoming human is a lifelong process; and one must not just restrict it to only season of lent.

In a busy life, with too many activities and deadlines to meet, we may forget the need for reflection, to look within and explore to find whether we are happy; and living fulfilling lives. Lent is a blessing for us as Catholics, for it comes like speed breaker, and slows us down reminding us that we are all on a journey and our destination is the same, despite the fact that we may be in a different compartment, the journey is only one. 

There is no second journey on this rail track and the we are all moving, expected to be and do our best. In this little time here on earth, we are called to journey with happiness, while we watch our companions getting down at different stations as their time has come, we take the learning’s, and also share our learning’s in life, enabling those who find difficulty in this journey, extending our helping hands and giving them some comfort and space in our compartment and sharing what we have.

Last evening I was planning for the menu, as today is Friday again David will fast and not eat anything; so wanted to prepare breakfast for my daughter… and then my daughter tells me that its Friday, and she will not eat breakfast and she will only take light lunch; I got worried for her, as the distance she travels for the school is quite far and it’s a full day school, which means she will leave home by 7.45a.m. and come back by 5p.m.  I tried rationalizing with her that she must take lunch enough to sustain her till evening, but being adamant, she had her way and took idli’s for lunch.

This was the first time Dorothy has taken lent very seriously, thanks to her catechism and her friends she made her own choice; which made me reflect too and sometimes it’s ok to fast, with all my reasoning and understanding I too decided to join my daughter and husband to fast this lent twice a week. I felt a lot better and spent more time in praying for my students; and all those who are part of my life.  Fasting for a cause and spending time in prayer makes a lot of difference.

I hope to sustain myself for the next 38 days, and will also allow myself to be flexible in learning adapting myself to things that I did not do before…

Be Blessed & Be Happy!