Friday Five – March 3, 2017

Here are the Friday Five questions for the first week of Lent, along with my reactions:

1.) Are you giving up, or taking on? Some combination thereof?

I moved from a 4-bedroom house to a 2-bedroom townhouse two weeks ago, and I had shoulder replacement surgery the week after my move. As a result, I’m still living in a forest of cardboard boxes. I’m trying to go through a few boxes each day, with the goal of giving/selling/tossing things as I unpack them. So my Lenten discipline is focused mainly on giving up the excess “stuff” I accumulated in the five years I spent in that very large house.

2.) Fasting? What does that look like for you?

It’s very easy for me to fall into a cycle of using food or “stuff” to try to take away spiritual and emotional pain. Fasting in this season means dealing directly with what has been hurtful rather than trying to bury it under layers of other things.

3.) In what way is study helpful to you this season? Are you reading, studying, journaling…?

There are two books that I plan to read during this Lenten season: The Gift of Imperfection by Brene Brown, and Healing Spiritual Wounds by Carol Howard Merritt.

4.) Purple. Do you find that your wardrobe is drawn to participate in the season?…

The main colors in my wardrobe – besides black, of course – are shades of purple and blue. So even without consciously trying, I will probably be liturgically correct most of the time.

5.) How are you finding ways to take “time apart” in order to avoid getting worn thin?

My activity is somewhat limited by my recovery from surgery. And I have recently moved into what I’m calling semi-retirement. So my challenge may be finding ways to avoid isolation rather than finding time apart. It’s a very odd sensation to experience this season from the pew rather than from the chancel. I believe that there will be new insights for me to gain; I’m curious to see what those will be.