I can’t stand being the person that I’ve been.
(Josephine ~ Frank Turner 2015)
In the past few years I’ve often tried to give up some guilty pleasure or bad habit for Lent. Usually quite successful, I have to say, without sounding too boastful, I hope. Since the end of last year I’m already trying to cut down on sweets and stuff, so it felt weird to now also do that for Lent. I mean, I will try to continue with that, but not because of Lent as such.
This year I think I might go more along the line of choosing “More Mindfulness as My Peak Challenge” which I have to admit, I’m trying to do, but not in a very structured way, unlike the whole 60 day of fitness / nutrition regime Sam and his people have worked out for the Challenge. But that’s fine, to me anyway.
So, what I’m trying to “give up” for Lent is to be so grumpy and pessimistic and anxious.
How am I going to do that? I have no freaking idea *g* But this afternoon I caught myself once again imaginging some worst-case-scenarios playing out in different areas of my life. And I thought: WTF?!?! Why does your idea of the future (days, weeks anything) also have to be tinted with worries and worst-cases? Not in regards to everything, thank God and not all the time. But most recently it feel like I still do that more often than I like. And that’s something I don’t like all that much.
My resolution for Lent therefore will be to try and be more relaxed. More mindful. More optimistic. More forgiving (especially to myself). More grateful for the many things I often take for granted, but which are not a given for everyone. I’m healthy (more or less) and so are most of the people I care about. I have a job, which I enjoy doing (most of the time) with a bunch of lovely coworkers. I have the financial and other means to not just support myself, but to do most of the things I love to do, like going to three Frank Turner shows in a row. And and and… there are so many other things I can be grateful for and happy about. I have no reason whatsoever to be so overly anxious as I seem to be these days.
So I’m just going to try and stop it.
Wish me luck :-)