Friday, February 19, 2010

Lent. Interesting.

There is a lot of ongoing research into a couple different possible projects in teh neighborhood that are just full of redtape slowing things down, so it was refreshing to get a text from Iris on Ash Wednesday asking me to bring my violin and join her for a musical lunch at Dawn's.

Dawn asked what I was giving up for Lent...I hadn't thought about it. I pointed out that I am not Catholic. Not even vaguely. Dawn pointed out that it was a spiritual excercise and not really tied to a denomination. So here's what I've decided to ry this year:

For the fourty days of Lent I will give up solid food. This is a big deal to me because I love to cook - and of course eat - and will still be cooking for others, but I thought it could be an interesting experience to keep a notebook during this time (surprise).

At fist I thought I would just record what I was grateful for whenever I was hungry or when I would normally have sat down to chew. The notebook went like this:

Coffee.
Coffee.
Coffee.
Coffee.
Windex.
Coffee.
Coffee.
Tea.
Coffee.
Dog food. (Don't ask.)

Hardly productive. So, instead, I have decided to take those times and set them aside as special moments of focus on the world around me. Instead of a steak, a sunset. Instead of a scoop of ice cream, a pause to look at a snap shot of the Madonna over her cofee cup. (Notes will still be taken, and in a notebook decorated with her hands collaged on a background of reclaimed wall paper.) So far I have been surprised with what has happened to the way I see things and I am only a couple days in; so we'll see what happens.
SPM

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