Tag Archives: Lent

Count Your Blessings

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I noticed a squirrel sitting on a rock across the pool in the morning sun. I like how the sunlight highlights his fur.

Count Your Blessings was how our weekly zoom call ended. Every Thursday, I have a zoom call with about a dozen other people where we discuss the world’s geopolitical problems, religion, local politics and news. We were on a dour note talking about how the world has changed from when we were young whippersnappers and how on earth our country is going to survive with 38 trillion dollars in debt.

Then one member of the group, who is a former history teacher and Jewish, said some insightful things, like there’s nothing new under the sun. If we think things are bad now, remember our country survived the Great Depression, World Wars and people of his faith faced the Holocaust.

He said to count our blessings. He said he looks forward to every Thursday morning to have an in depth discussion with a group of intelligent people who want to make a difference. He reminded us that none of us are homeless, we’re in good health, we have our families and our homes. He said in the Jewish faith they say blessings all day long. His favorite blessings are for bodily functions. He gives blessings that God has given him a miraculous body that still works!

I googled blessings because this was something new to me. I learned that people of Jewish faith aim to say 100 blessings a day.

We left the zoom call with positive feelings and gratitude for the important things in our lives.

A squirrel on a bench in our backyard.

I’m grateful for my family, my home and the wild creatures around me.

I spotted a Gila Woodpecker feeding somebody in the Saguaro Cactus nest.

He’s been going in and out the past few days. Maybe he’s preparing the nest, or there’s already babies in there.

I scared him away with my camera.

What are you grateful for today? What do you think of counting your blessings?

Ash Wednesday Thoughts

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brother and sister at piano
My kids at a piano recital. I’m posting this photo from years ago because my daughter would say she was giving up piano lessons for Lent.

I’m going to try and go to Ash Wednesday services today. I say “try” because the church by our house is so busy! On special days, I can’t make a right hand turn to go 1/2 mile to get to the parish because the cars are lined up at least a mile down the street. I sit at the stop sign, hoping for someone to let me in. I’ve had to turn around and go home because nobody let me in. How Christian of them!

I do believe that Lent is a good time to reflect on our lives. One Ash Wednesday service in past years stands out to me. Rather than giving something up — like chocolate or alcohol — the priest suggested doing something. He talked about investing more time in prayer or volunteering to help someone else. He felt it should be a time of giving of ourselves. He suggested reading the book of Mark from the Bible during the 40 days of Lent.

I’m a convert to Catholicism so I had to learn about Lent. I didn’t grow up with it. My kids did and my daughter always said she was giving up piano lessons for Lent. Yes, she hated piano. I thought piano had so many benefits and forced her to take lessons, years beyond what I should have done, she often reminds me.

If you don’t observe Lent and wonder what it’s all about, here’s a definition from Britannica:

Lent, in the Christian church, a period of penitential preparation for Easter. In Western churches it begins on Ash Wednesday, six and a half weeks before Easter, and provides for a 40-day fast (Sundays are excluded), in imitation of Jesus Christ’s fasting in the wilderness before he began his public ministry. In Eastern churches Lent begins on the Monday of the seventh week before Easter and ends on the Friday that is nine days before Easter. This 40-day “Great Lent” includes Saturdays and Sundays as relaxed fast days.

Here’s a link to Good Housekeeping’s article called 25 Creative Things to Give Up for Lent in 2021: From gossip and complaining to junk food and coffee, ditching these habits could change your life by Juliana Labianca. There are a lot of good ideas to do in that article that could improve your life — whether or not you observe Lent.

Another thing I’m doing is taking a 40-day Lenten Challenge on the Hallow App. It’s with Mark Wahlberg, Chris Pratt, Jonathan Roumie and Fr. Mike Schmitz. If you haven’t tried Hallow, I really enjoy it and recommend it to add to your prayer life.

Do you have plans for Lent? If so, what are they?

What are your thoughts about doing something as opposed to giving up something?

Remember when?

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One of my all time favorite movies growing up. It was broadcast on TV annually around Halloween.

Remember when we used to watch broadcast TV as a family? We didn’t have cable and there were three main stations, ABC, NBC and CBS. We had a local channel and PBS. That was it.

During holidays, we’d gather as a family in front of the TV and watch the holiday-themed movies. Mom would make popcorn in a big pot on the stove. If we were really lucky, we’d get to help shake the foil covered Jiffy Pop over a burner. For Halloween we’d watch Wizard of Oz and The Great Pumpkin.

Christmas included movies that my parents liked including It’s a Wonderful Life and White Christmas. I liked Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer, A Charlie Brown Christmas and Frosty the Snowman. My parents had us watch A Christmas Carol, but it was way to scary for me with the ghosts of Christmas past. When I had kids, I introduced my kids to my childhood favorites plus Meet Me in St. Louis.

Now that it’s Lent and Easter Season there are more movies to watch together as a family. I admit as soon as cable and streaming came into our lives, we don’t watch movies together very often. We watch TV together more for football games than any movies. My husband and I end up in separate rooms watching TV, reading or listening to podcasts on our laptops.

I wrote about five Easter movies HERE.

This is a movie I remember watching as a family on Easter weekend.

Do you watch movies together as a family?

What were your favorite holiday movies growing up?

So…What are you giving up for Lent?

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images-2

March 5 is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of 40 days and 40 nights of Lent for many Christians. What are you giving up? Or more importantly, what are you going to do?

Three things I learned about Lenten season 10 years ago by Father Lincoln at Sacred Heart Church in Palm Desert stayed with me. He said to fast on Ash Wednesday and Fridays, carve out more time for daily prayer, and do good works. He never mentioned giving anything up.

Yes, I’ll be hungry Wednesday and probably every Friday, craving a fat juicy steak that I’d normally not care about. It’s a funny thing when you can’t have something, you fixate on it.

Second, I will find time to pray more. I believe that prayers make a difference in this world. A few months ago, I downloaded an app on my phone you may have heard about called Hallow. I signed up for their Lenten prayers, which I will listen to and pray with every day throughout Lent. They will have prayers every day given by everyone from a priest, to a former minister to Gwen Stefani and Marky Mark. Currently, I’m listening to their Bible in a Year podcast and I’m on day 109. I find it so helpful for my daily life.

Third, there is the part about doing good works. I think that is most difficult of all.  Off the top of my head I don’t know what “good works” I can do. However, I am confident that if I keep my eyes open and look around me, I’ll see small ways where I can make a difference. 

I remember when my daughter was in kindergarten at her Catholic school. The kids had to tell the class what they were giving up for Lent. She said piano lessons! She hated piano.

I’d like to know what you are doing for Lent. If you think about doing good works, what would they be?

What are you giving up for Lent?

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Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of 40 days and 40 nights of Lent for many Christians. What are you giving up? Or more importantly, what are you going to do?

The three things I heard this week to do for the Lenten season were fast on Ash Wednesday and Fridays, carve out more time for daily prayer and do good works.

Yes, I’m hungry, and probably will be every Friday, craving a fat juicy steak that I’d normally not care about. It’s a funny thing when you can’t have something, you fixate on it.

Second, I will find time to pray more. If you believe that prayers make a difference in this world, then more prayer is a good idea.

Third, there is the part about doing good works. I think that is most difficult of all. Off the top of my head I don’t know what “good works” I will do. However, I am confident that if I keep my eyes open and look around me, I’ll see small ways where I can make a difference. 

I remember when my daughter was in elementary school, she told me she was giving up piano lessons for Lent!

If you observe Lent, I’d like to know what you are doing for Lent. Are you giving something up or adding something like good works?

Ash Wednesday: do you give something up — or give?

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Ash Wednesday ashes

Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of 40 days and 40 nights of Lent for many Christians. Do you give something up? Or what are you going to do?

The three things I’ve heard about Lent are to fast on Ash Wednesday and Fridays, carve out more time for daily prayer and do good works.

I get hungry on Ash Wednesday and Fridays, craving a fat juicy steak that I’d normally not care about. It’s a funny thing when you can’t have something, you fixate on it.

Second, I will find time to pray more. If you believe that prayers make a difference in this world, then more prayer should be easy.

Third, there is the part about doing good works. I think that is most difficult of all. Off the top of my head I don’t know what “good works” I can do. I will keep my eyes open and look around me to see small ways where I can make a difference. 

I’m going to Ash Wednesday services for the first time since the COVID shutdown. There’s a church less than two miles from our house that I’ve never been to that has four Ash Wednesday services.

I remember when my daughter was young she said she was giving up piano lessons for Lent. She hated piano. In the past, I’ve given up Facebook, Diet Coke, wine and chocolate. I haven’t decided what I’m going to give up or do this year. I’m working on it.

What you are doing for Lent? What good works are you going to do? Or what are you going to give up?

heartfelt note to a soldier from a gold star child
A heartfelt note from a gold star child to a soldier.

Ash Wednesday during COVID-19

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brother and sister at piano

My kids at a piano recital.

I just read that the Vatican has instructed priests to sprinkle ashes on the heads of people, rather than the traditional cross on the forehead. I’m going to forgo Ash Wednesday services in person this year and will listen to the service online. That’s a new practice for churchgoers that I hope will go by the wayside by next year.

I do believe that Lent is a good time to reflect on our lives. One Ash Wednesday service in past years stands out to me. Rather than giving something up — like chocolate or alcohol — the priest suggested doing something. He talked about investing more time in prayer or volunteering to help someone else, he felt it should be a time of giving of ourselves. He suggested reading the book of Mark from the Bible during the 40 days of Lent.

I’m a convert to Catholicism so I had to learn about Lent. I didn’t grow up with it. My kids did and my daughter always said she was giving up piano lessons for Lent. Yes, she hated piano. I thought piano had so many benefits and forced her to take lessons, years beyond what I should have done, she often reminds me.

If you don’t observe Lent and wonder what it’s all about, here’s a definition from Britannica:

Lent, in the Christian church, a period of penitential preparation for Easter. In Western churches it begins on Ash Wednesday, six and a half weeks before Easter, and provides for a 40-day fast (Sundays are excluded), in imitation of Jesus Christ’s fasting in the wilderness before he began his public ministry. In Eastern churches Lent begins on the Monday of the seventh week before Easter and ends on the Friday that is nine days before Easter. This 40-day “Great Lent” includes Saturdays and Sundays as relaxed fast days.

Here’s a link to Good Housekeeping’s article called 25 Creative Things to Give Up for Lent in 2021: From gossip and complaining to junk food and coffee, ditching these habits could change your life by Juliana Labianca. There are a lot of good ideas to do in that article that could improve your life — whether or not you observe Lent.

A friend emailed this eight-minute Homily about Lent. It’s a time to be cheerful and transformative.