Ash Wednesday

So, the party's over and the season of penitence has begun!

This year I've decided to give up eating meat (specifically red meat and chicken, as I'll continue to eat fish a couple of times a week).  I don't see the value in depriving oneself of something just for the sake of it, so  I've chosen meat because I believe that I probably eat more meat than is good for either me or the planet.  The concession to fish is mainly to accommodate my younger daughter who is fairly horrified at the thought of having to eat nothing but vegetables for 40 days.  I shall also make sure that there is a selection of sausages, chicken, fish fingers etc for her to supplement the veggie dishes.  It is, after all, my fast, not hers.

I also think it's helpful to do something positive to complement the negative, to take up alongside the giving up.  So I'll be reading chapter a day of  Lent for Everyone - Mark by Tom Wright.

This hasn't been a particularly easy day to begin, a busy one, not ending until almost eight.  My daughter was eating leftover chilli with a baked potato, which I couldn't share.  So I took advantage of a £1 deal on a carton of New Covent Garden leek and potato soup, which wasn't nearly as good as my own but was quick and filling.

I shall read my first chapter before bed tonight.