Last Wednesday marked the beginning of Lent. Eli and I got up early to attend 6:30 am Mass. He was so good during Mass that it tempts me to change our regular Mass time on Saturday night to 7:00 am Sunday morning. He was a little confused by my ashes so I turned the camera on him so he could see and this was his face of confusion. He would've had a better marking of ashes, but he turned his head to look at me while I was receiving mine and Father tried his best to mark him.
I went to school after Mass and was bombarded by so many curious students. I think I explained what Ash Wednesday was about a hundred times by the end of the day. Explaining the meaning of Lent helped me remember why we, Catholics, do what we do.
I found this quote on Instagram and thought it was the perfect way to describe why we mark ourselves with ashes.
This Lenten season I am working on reading a new devotional called The Gargoyle Code that a friend gave to me. It is much different than previous Lenten devotions I have read and really makes me think about where I am at in my relationship with God.
This is the first year in a long time that I have given something up, in addition to doing extra things. The night before Lent, I thought about some things that I feel like I cannot live without and chocolate was the first thing to come to my mind. Obviously, I can live without chocolate, but I some times feel that I HAVE to have it. I will scrounge my cabinets looking for chocolate when I'm really having a moment. I feel like I have to have chocolate at some point everyday. And that is unnecessary. I am focusing on offering up my urge for chocolate to Jesus every time I feel that need.
I am also starting new traditions with Eli this year. I want to bring him to Stations of the Cross. I know he won't understand them, but I feel that the more I bring him to church the more he is acquainted with the atmosphere and how to act.(Yes, he's only one and his attitude changes with the wind, but I do see a difference.) By incorporating him in Mass he quiets down a bit better. I will ask him, "Where is Jesus?" He will usually stop and point to the crucifix or the stained glass windows. Or we will tell him that Father is coming and move him further to the aisle so he can see Father walking down.
I pray that we all find time during this season to focus on Christ's journey in the desert and drawing ourselves closer to Him.
Read last year's post here.
Good post. I remind myself regularly that the easiest path isn't always the best. This is really true with kiddos Ang how we raise them.
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