Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Purpose

Today is the first day of Lent. Traditionally, one gives up some vice or habit (swearing, smoking... I've heard someone say once they were going to give up almonds...) for the 40 days of Lent to mimic the temptation Jesus faced while wandering the desert (at least, I think I have that right... I am not what you'd call a "good Catholic"). One faces the temptation to swear when they slop tomato soup all over their pants.... or the craving to have a cigarette... (or to eat an almond...) and have to rely in their inner strength to not give in, as Jesus did not give in to the temptations of Satan in the desert.

Again... I think I have that right.

Traditionally, being the not-a-good-Catholic that I am, I don't give anything up for Lent. I didnt grow up in a household where-for better or worse-we didn't practice that particular act of sacrifice. This year I am changing that. I was inspired--and I continue to be inspired-by a book I am reading that champions self-reliance, productiveness and pride in one's accomplishments. It has motivated me to... to DO. Just to do... something. Laundry. Dishes. Tasks at work that are perpetually on the back burner. I feel compelled to start and finish projects large and small. Or to learn new things so that I can do more. Produce more. Accomplish more. Rely on myself more.

Therefore, I am giving up sloth for Lent.

I want to spend the hours I am awake doing, learning, creating. I spend too much time... wasting time. Last night I read a passage in the book that explored how much more we can get done if we simply do. If I become super proficient in... say in making dinner, and cleaning things up as I go along, there is more time for me to spend after dinner doing something else. The more I cook dinner and find shortcuts & streamline the process, or the more attention I pay to planning the preparation of the meal, the more time I can have in the midst of the process to clean the mess I'm making. Which in turn means there is less to do after I eat. Which in turn means I can do something else with that little chunck of time I've created for myself. Go to the gym. Walk the dogs. Pull up weeds in the garden. Anything!

That is not to say I'm not going to relax... for even relaxation can have purpose. I am not toting some kind of idea that I have to spend 20 hrs a day physically doing something, constanting putting pressure on myself to do, do DO!. Thats crazy. I can physically relax while I read a mentally-challenging book, or a book that I can learn from in some way. I can work on planning my garden... which will become a labor of love by July, but for now I find enjoyable, creative and fun... not taxing.

In other words... I want to live my next 40 days full of purpose in everything I do. Whether it is cleaning the house, working in the yard or riding my horse. Hopefully after doing for 40 days, I will have created good habits for myself, and it will carry on to the long-term, and that those good habits will help me achieve some personal goals I have set for myself.

One... which has been my stated-but-never-reached goal for the past couple of years.. is to go recognized at Beginner Novice this year. Fall would be good. And for those who are unawares of what that means Beginner Novice is the lowest level of nationally-recognized Eventing. And its a BIG DEAL. To me it is, anyway. I was recently blessed to recieve an offer I could not refuse... to have Alfie in full training at absolutely no cost to me, and this is a huge step in the right direction for us. Alfie's trainer loves him (Happy 9th Birthday Alfie!!!) as much as I do, and sees the potential he has, and she wants to help him succeed. I have to do my best to succeed, too, so that come fall, Alfie and I are a well-conditioned, perfectly tuned in to one another and prepared. I'm planning on asking some of my horsey friends to hold me accountable and keep me on track.

So... the purpose of this whole blog is now to keep myself accountable and to report in on my progress on, not just my 40 days of sloth-less living, but my overall attempt at changing my habits to be productive.

1 comment:

  1. sloth....a big one!....how did you do?

    on to being a 'good Catholic' ;)

    ReplyDelete