Lent beginning... Holy week...

[Natalka]

Tweety, that's a wonderful act of charity to do, and a very appropriate time to do it!

[DiamondLil]

Thank you for the reminder.

[AmberLab]

We were talking about pancakes for supper and DS said to his grandmother today "No, it's not Pancake Day, it's Oatmeal Day." LOL

[Zonny]

I told my DS to guess what we were having for supper, that it started with P-A-N and that spells PAN. He replied, "Pan...pandas? We're having panda bears for supper?"

[Natalka]

We were talking about pancakes for supper and DS said to his grandmother today "No, it's not Pancake Day, it's Oatmeal Day." LOL

I told my DS to guess what we were having for supper, that it started with P-A-N and that spells PAN. He replied, "Pan...pandas? We're having panda bears for supper?"

Awww.... to both of these!

[glowworm2k]

Today is the start of Lent for me, and I decided yesterday on my walk home from work what I'd be doing for Lent. As I mentioned previously, I have been doing a lot of procrastination lately and that has been frustrating me, yet I don't seem to be able to stop. It appears to be driven by my use of computers and the internet, but is also amplified by my frustration; I'm caught in the circle of trying to work productively, getting frustrated with no ideas, surfing the net, getting caught up in comments, getting more frustrated, trying to work......
So, here's what I've decided to give up:
1) online games: no SC arcade, no online boggle, no online crosswords.....
2) reading the "discussion" and comments on blogs as well as online sites like theglobeandmail.com or cbc.ca; I'll let myself read the post/story (for information) but I will skip the comments as I don't really need to spend 5 minutes seeing what everyone else thinks and getting riled up when I think they're wrong....
3) I also realized that I'm spending too much of my time being frustrated or annoyed with the actions of others - especially with things that are completely out of my control - so I am going to attempt to turn these energies toward something more productive by trying to do 5 minutes of meditation when I get stressed instead of voicing my frustration and displeasure. Really, nobody needs to hear my negativity and I certainly could do better without this destructive force. I found an article on the reader's digest site with some meditation ideas that I'm going to try. I will pass it along in case anyone else is interested: http://www.readersdigest.ca/health/h...ute-meditation

Here we go - Day 1! Wish me luck!! (And, maybe, wish for April 8th to get here ASAP )

[MortgageQueen]

Lent is a 40 day period which Christians observe before Easter. It's that length because that's the number of days Jesus spent fasting in the desert before he began his public ministry.

The word "Lent" means spring - so this period is basically a spiritual spring cleaning...

I can only explain it from the Catholic perspective; perhaps others could add their reflections on this as well.

Traditionally, three practices are observed: more prayer/reflection; fasting (self-control, sacrifice, remembering those who have less than we do); and almsgiving/charity (caring for those in need). Often people give up a vice for the Lenten period, or add doing good works.

The purpose is to strengthen one's faith and devotion - Lent is a time of reflection, and preparation for renewal.

Wow. . that's very admirable. It's so nice that there are so many of you doing this too. . . .but then not surprising that there's tons of good people here at SC.

In my religion, we spend this time of year reflecting on the last weeks of Jesus life, his ultimate sacrifice, and most importantly, what he is doing right now.
With so much suffering and evil in the world, i for one, look forward to when he brings about the words in the prayer he gave "let your kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven."

Then we won't have to worry about the poor and unfortunate. There won't be any. . . and everyone will do good works.
You guys would obviously fit right in!

[sueshe]

So I've made the promise to myself to forgo TV for lent. I will pvr a hockey game or two and then watch them on Sundays(mini Easter). Yesterday went well,when I got home last night from work,I focused on preparing a special dinner and spending time with my dh,which was so appreciated by him

[glowworm2k]

So I've made the promise to myself to forgo TV for lent. I will pvr a hockey game or two and then watch them on Sundays(mini Easter). Yesterday went well,when I got home last night from work,I focused on preparing a special dinner and spending time with my dh,which was so appreciated by him

Way to go with giving up TV! My suggestion for the hockey games would be to listen to them on the radio - my grandparents used to listen to sports on the radio when I was young (they had a TV but no cable, so they didn't get most games). I spent 5 years working as a security guard and listened to hockey and football (CFL) games on the radio on my 12-hour weekend shifts. I find that it's still very exciting to hear games instead of seeing them, and if you're a big hockey fan it might help you make it through Lent.

[sueshe]

I'm a huge hockey fan so radio might work well for me! I'm a season ticket holder for WHL games and will attend a Canucks game next month,so I will get my fix(I hope!)
I will be exercising every day to help fill the time.

[glowworm2k]

As we're now nearing the end of Lent, I thought I'd bump this to see how everyone's Lent has been.

I myself have found it to be challenging at times; I really love playing little games etc. as time wasters and have found myself instead directing the energy to more positive avenues - informing myself about issues by reading the news, or just focusing back on my own work. I honestly think that giving up casual games helped me to get my thesis done by the March 31st deadline; I have used the focus that the season offered to give me discipline and patience. In short, I'm once again learning how to concentrate properly and be mindful of the world around me... some very important lessons at Eastertime!

[Natalka]

glowworm, how wonderful that you were able to make such changes!

For me, I have two weeks left (our Easter is a week later), but in general, I think I've done well.
I did challenge myself to one food give-up - that was potato chips, a big nemesis of mine. I slipped only once... and it wasn't a binge, just a handful.

Regarding my keeping things on a better even keel temperwise, I must say that thinking before I speak is a huge challenge for someone like me, but I've done much better in that regard.
I have done much more reflection daily, and that's been a good, positive addition for me.

[Natalka]

This year, our church is having Easter on the Julian (old) calendar, so we're a week behind and our Holy Week begins this weekend with Willow Sunday (Palm Sunday).

However, I'm into Easter mode now, since mostly everyone is...

Every year, I try to watch at least parts of "Jesus Christ Superstar"...

Thursday - The Last Supper

[Natalka]

The Garden of Gethsemane -

[Lynn49]

Oh, I love that movie, Natalka! I think more than other depictions of Judas, it does show the conflict in him, and to be perfectly honest, I don't see him as a villain...he's depicted so differently in his own 'gospel' (you know...one of the ones the catholic church decided didn't jive with what they wanted us to believe?) and through other works...And...can I say this? Jesus looks just as I imagine him to be.....what a perfect actor they picked for him in this movie!!