Talking to myself...

This is the blog I generally use when I just have something to get off my chest or something I know is of interest only to me, and I don't expect anyone to actually ever read it, much less follow it. I am, therefore, a little more comfortable posting here than in some other places I could.

I have to wonder if some people think I am a cold-hearted person because I didn't say anything about that ever-so-recent school shooting in CT. The truth is that I can't think of anything worthy of saying. I have a 7-year-old. It's all too personal and too real for me. This morning when I dropped her off at school and wished her a good day, I wondered about those other parents who said good-bye to their children, not knowing it would be the last time. And then I think about all the mornings that haven't gone smoothly, when I've been annoyed about missing socks and missed busses-- what if that were *my* last morning? I will do better. I have to.

I read a blog posts reflecting on what happened that moved me, but I don't really feel comfortable sharing it on  the social media sites I am on. I know that some people would appreciate it, but some people would get hung up on the mention of "violent video game" or on the mention of God. So... here it is, although I do figure I'm talking to myself, as I said: Reflections on the Connecticut School Shooting

 All I can say is that if you don't think there's a lot of anger out there, you don't get out much. I know I haven't always been the best peacemaker. I am a relatively patient person, but we all have our days. I would like to be a little more mindful of how I treat others so that I don't cause harm with things I say or do thoughtlessly. It's not much, but it is something I can do to make this world a little less dark.

LENT!

O Lord and Master of my life, take from me the spirit of sloth, despair, lust of power, and idle talk.But give rather the spirit of chastity, humility, patience, and love to Thy servant.Yea, O Lord and King, grant me to see my own transgressions, and not to judge my brother, for blessed art Thou, unto ages of ages. Amen.

So, this Sunday is Meatfare Sunday, the last day to eat meat before Lent. Then there's Cheesefare week, a last chance to eat dairy before the first day of Lent, which will be Monday, February 27, this year.

I will admit that I've had mixed results in my attempts to keep the Lenten and Nativity fasts in the past, but I am determined to do this all the way this year. I won't be blogging about my efforts, since that would go rather against the spirit of the exercise (see Matthew 6:16-18), but I might write a little bit in more general terms about  what all this means to me, any astoundingly good vegan recipes I encounter, and how it is that I ended up at Orthodoxy in the first place. I hope that I will do better if I make an effort to keep in mind what I am doing and why. I hate to admit it, but it is pretty easy to let God take a backseat when you're swamped with all the mundane details of material life. (And that's probably when I could use God the most!)