welcome to lent

ahh.  the second day of lent.  after having binged on king cake i find myself thinking about what i'm going to do this year.  i've never really been a fan of giving something up during lent, it always seemed a little easy and trite.  besides, i wasn't really going to give up something that i couldn't live without, so it wasn't a real period of growth.  (maybe the fact that i wasn't giving up what matters affected my experience of lent more).


i have friends who are giving up cokes, sugar, coffee, facebook, even television.  i also have friends who aren't giving anything up - rather they're attempting to start new positive disciplines - having family dinners, reading (to themselves or children), embracing 40 days of kindness.  you know the drill.  


thinking about it, i've decided that i'm giving up being lazy.  or at least, telling myself that i'm lazy.  this involves a couple of different aspects.  it means taking better care of myself - what i eat, how much i sleep, how i manage stress - as well as finding some time for myself.


last month i spent three days with a group of pastors whose topic was our spiritual health.  in the course of that conference it became increasingly clear to me that what i needed was time for me.  it didn't matter if that was on the elliptical machine or in the bathtub, but i needed time to recharge my own batteries.  some time where my only responsibility was to myself.  no work, no dog, no baby, no husband, no house, just me.  


a woman i know once said that 'tiredness breeds tiredness'.  (she's a really annoying bubbly personality as you might imagine. the kind that always looks effortless and carefree.  she must have had some diet pills in her purse!)  but she's right.  the more i worry about how tired i am, the tired-er i get!  i'm already worn out and its not even march yet.  


so enough feeling sorry for myself, enough bone-tiredness, get ready elliptical machine and bathtub - here i come.  we're going to see if that woman i know was right.