Thursday 23 February 2012

Lent

Lenten Rose - Helleborus Orientalis
Are you one of those who feel that the word Lent means giving something up? Conveniently it rolls around several weeks after the New Year's resolutions have been made, broken and forgotten. Whether or not you have religious beliefs attached to the season, I think it has a lot going for it as a time to break an old bad habit or establish a new good one. For instance it involves forty days - infinitely more achievable than the indefinite new year. ( Is a new year's resolution for that year only or that rather vague notion of forever or until I can't stand sticking to it any more?)  Lent has a finish date that you can work towards by ticking days off on your calendar. It also comes at a time of the year when the world outside is gearing up for a new season and renewal so why not hope for a new me or at least some new attributes?


Is it really long enough to make or break an ingrained habit? I think it is. One year I gave up tea and coffee. Cue two weeks of drowsiness, grumpiness and vague headaches to make me realise the impact my intake of caffeine was having on mind and body. After two weeks the  bad effects of caffeine deprivation wore off  and the benefits like better sleep became more noticeable. I can't claim that this instance of giving up for Lent was life changing and that I never let tea or coffee pass my lips again but it took me some time to go back to those drinks and I have never gone back to my previous level of consumption. Another year I gave up bread and cakes and in the process lost over 20 pounds in weight. It was an education in my snacking habits - those slices of bread slathered with butter and Vegemite 'to keep me going' while I cooked dinner and  tidying up the fruit cake by trimming off the corner seemed to have crept in and made themselves permanent fixtures in my routine.  Again, although I didn't give them up for good, it has made me aware of my eating habits.

So what will I do this year? It won't be dietary changes. I am still on a low fibre diet which is restricting enough and with my oncologist and dietician warning me not to loose any more weight, that would seem impractical. (See Comments below for an update on Something Completely Different)
Besides, I have long had a nagging feeling that whatever I decided to do should have benefit for others, not just me. For sometime now, we have been attempting a whole house de-clutter, room by room, cupboard by cupboard and shelf by shelf. The tricky bit we find - apart from maintaining momentum - is having decided that we no longer need an item in our lives, what to do with it. The stuff that we agree that nobody else would need in their lives either is pretty straight forward. Recycle or bin. It is the other stuff that presents the problem. If it is conceivably of use to others, what is the best way to make sure it gets to them. HeWhoLooksForSolutionsOnTheInternet has free-cycled some stuff but we have decided against Ebay. All that packaging and posting! That leaves charity shops as an option. Judging by the cool reception I got taking a bulging carrier bag into one of our locals, they were rather overwhelmed  with donations immediately after Christmas. Yesterday we hauled a huge bag of books into the nearest Oxfam bookshop. Not only were received warmly but we were also offered the opportunity to GiftAid the donation. I didn't know you could do that with donated goods though I have done that with cash donations to charities. A filled form later and we left the shop with a page of stickers to tag any further bags of books we might have for them. It all helped me to clarify in my mind that this Lent I would give up hanging onto stuff we no longer need.There will also be the added benefit of not having one of the worktops in the kitchen acting as an assembly point for items of undecided destiny - they will all have to go. Ah,  nothing proclaims the potential of each brand new day like a clear workspace!



I have been seeking decluttering motivation in some of the minimalist blogs and websites. You might enjoy Joshua Becker's thoughts on Lent.