today is ash wednesday (m)

Ash Wednesday is the start of Lent, a 40-day period of fasting, prayer and penitence leading up to Easter Sunday.  It is the holiest season of the year for Christians.

In elementary school, we would march single file over to the church next door and get ashes placed on our foreheads while the priest chanted "Remember, you are dust and unto dust you shall return" to remind us of our mortality.

Then, we would return to our classroom and be asked to think about what we planned to give up for Lent.  Most of us answered "candy."  I thought that, given my size, I should give up more than just candy so I vowed to give up eating between meals. 

I never made it past two days.

The best I could muster was giving up Baby Ruth bars although I didn't tell anyone that they were my least favorite candy (they have a stale taste, even when fresh).  I once went a whole Lenten season without eating a Baby Ruth bar.  Big deal.

At this point in my life, I feel I should make a committment to give up something that would represent a true sacrifice.  I have made no decisions yet, but here is the list of candidates I am mulling over:

-100 calorie microwave popcorn --this is the mainstay of my diet.  I eat one bag a day.  This will hurt.
-WW candy bars --I eat these when I want a hit of chocolate. Not a meaningful sacrifice as I don't think I'd miss them.
-My egg on english muffin breakfast--this is my "go to" 3-point breakfast when I want something nutritious and filling and hot.  If I don't eat this, I'm down to Special K or Greek yogurt.  Tough one.
-Alcohol-this is the new Baby Ruth.  I don't like to drink, but everyone else thinks it's a huge sacrifice.  I'd look like a hero but we all know I'd be cheating Lent-wise.
-Shopping online-Ouch.  This one would hurt.  I could have a Mardi Gras of sorts tonight with Amazon and a couple of online stores and then shut down for 40 days.  Definitely under consideration.
-Television-my husband and I have a date every night to watch Law & Order SVU (except during the Olympics).  If I don't do this, it will affect him.  Other than that, I don't really watch tv.
-Cell phone-I would do this in a minute but I have the kids to consider.  Maybe we'll all stop texting for forty days.  That would be the best thing that could happen to us all.
-Blogging- This is my favorite new activity.  This would be the biggest sacrifice on the list.

I'm sorry, but I might have to do this last one.  That's the whole point of Lent.  Everything else on the list seems trivial.