Lint comes after Festivus and before Oyster

Anyone raised in a Catholic family is familiar with Lent, a forty-day period of penance, reflection and fasting leading up to the Easter celebration.  As a child, I thought Lent was kind of silly.  I didn't really understand how not eating chocolate had anything to do with Easter.  But as an adult, I began to appreciate the value of having this period in my life.  I began loosely observing Lent, most effectively by adding something (thus "giving up" time) instead of just stopping something.

When I finally left the Catholic church, I also left Lent behind me.  In recent years though, I've begun to try to find a way to incorporate this tradition back into my life.  I was initially inspired by Kevin Gillespie, who shared on Top Chef that he and his wife went full-on vegetarian each year for Lent.  I felt a twinge and realized that I missed the positive growth I had found during Lent. Then one of my neighbors announced she would disappear from Facebook "for a while," and I suddenly saw the obvious: I didn't have to do "Lent" to have a period of reflection.

And so, this year -- today, in fact -- Lint was born.  I had already decided to observe a 40-day period and said, "I should come up with my own name," when my husband immediately suggested "Lint" and once I stopped laughing, I knew it was the perfect moniker.  Instead of Fish Fridays, we do Meatless Mondays.  Observation of Lint in our home comes just after Festivus and is followed by Oyster; of course precisely where Lint falls on the calendar is a very personal choice, so timing varies greatly from one individual to another.

This year, I am giving up all adult cocktails, wine and beer, beginning today.  My husband plans to begin his Lint tomorrow.  I'm excited about my "Linten" journey and do plan to cap it off by eating Oysters, possibly with champagne!  It is my intention to use the next forty days to reflect on ways to be healthier, to give more of myself to my community and others and to make time for quiet and prayer in my daily life.  I will also practice discipline, self-denial during my own season of conversion and simplicity.

It doesn't matter if you're Catholic or Methodist, Pagan or Pastafarian.  Lint is for everyone!  Join me if you dare!

I'd love to know what others are giving up or doing for 40 days, whether it's Lint or Lent.