Giving Up

For those of you who are either not Catholic or don’t own a calendar, tomorrow is Ash Wednesday.  That means today is Fat Tuesday….or as it’s known in our house….Eat All the Chocolate in the House Day.  The children, or at least some of them, are giving up candy for Lent and it’s easier on all of us if temptation is not in the house.

My sweet husband gives up cursing every year.  It’s amazing how this simple change in vocabulary changes the world around him.  His co-workers look forward to his attitude shift every Lent.  He doesn’t even cuss that often, only when the stupid computers stop working, but it’s the knowledge that he has to control himself that changes things.

My eldest child and I are both giving up Facebook.  It’s a major time thief for both of us.  There are so many other things we could be doing with our time that aren’t on a computer screen.  We could actually (Gasp!) spend time with the people in our house.

These things all help us to become better people and closer to what God wants from us.  Eating healthier, watching our language, and not wasting time are all good things for us to do.  I just am looking for something a bit more this Lent.

So I’m going to add daily Mass to my schedule.  This means giving up sleeping in.  It means giving up a morning snuggled under my warm blankets and cuddling with the little boys.  The whole of  the day is available for the boys (especially without Facebook) but the mornings will belong to God.

I’m feeling the need to begin my days in the presence of the Almighty.  I’m needing to draw myself into Him.  This year my Lent is not going to be about me and what I’m giving up, but about rediscovering Peace, Joy and making time for God