Mardi Gras

The Tuesday before Ash Wednesday is known as "Fat Tuesday", or Mardi Gras, allowing for an extravagant splurge in eating and drinking, before the rigorous fast and abstinence of Ash Wednesday and the 40 days of prayer, fasting and almsgiving, the three pillars of practice encouraged by the Church. In Europe and in Latin American countries, it is known as "Carnivale", farewell to meat, and often extends beyond a one-day observance. The excesses of Mardi Gras in New Orleans attract visitors from all over the world for a week before Ash Wednesday.
For us today, we might indulge in something special by way of food, but we might also take the time to write down what we are going to do from tomorrow until the Triduum, which begins with the Liturgy of the Lord's Supper on Holy Thursday, remembering that this is a special time to make a sincere effort to draw closer to Jesus. Will it be daily Mass, Stations of the cross on Fridays, Lectio Divina...a slow, meditative and repetitive reading of a passage of Scripture, a volunteering at Cor Unum or Lazarus House, or some organization that serves the underprivileged, daily rosary, or a period of quiet time before the Blessed Sacrament? Will we "give up" something as a sign of our deeper desire to follow Jesus? There are many options, the secret is to keep it simple so that consistency might be maintained for the 40 days to enable real growth to take place. Also needed are an open mind to accept our failures and a determination to start over again when we fall.
Bro. Rene