Over the past few years, I’ve gotten away from giving things up for Lent in large part because life has been hemming me in for a while. This year has been particularly strict, with constraints on my diet, mandatory activity and so on. I’ve lost as much weight as is healthy, and so I’m looking more at increased devotions and prayer.
However, I am also being more mindful about time, and abstaining from going online as a time-waster, hence the gap in posting. I’m also limiting my streaming of videos to weekends, freeing up dedicated time during the week for additional reading.
My habit of fasting on Fridays in order to have pepperoni pizza for dinner has proved a bit challenging. On the face of it, I can now just go meatless (which I always could) but that feels wrong. One should be eating less during Lent, not more. So I continue the fast, and also drop the meat.
In the context of Ash Wednesday, that’s something of an ordeal. I fasted, ate and fasted again. I’m down a pound for the effort, and yesterday I was keenly aware of it. All part of the sacrifice, I suppose.
My daughter has an even worse ordeal, having had jaw surgery and being on a liquid diet until next week, after which she moves to soft food and finally – about Easter time – real food. She’s lost 10 pounds. Funny how the timing works out.
Another aspect of my mandatory free time is writing and publishing. My revision to Conqueror had stalled, and this is forcing it back on track. I’m also burning through The War for Middle Earth and hope to finish it and Ovid in time to pick up City of God for some Lenten reading. I hope your Lent is as fruitful.
Chateau Lloyd 
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