Oh, what a difference a year makes! We are getting closer to that time. You know the one I mean. That day when Covid began to hit our shores, when we could no longer think about the virus being “over there” in China or Spain or Italy. When we looked at those countries being on full lock-down and thought, Thank goodness that’s not us having to do that.
But we’re not there, yet. As I look back on Mardi Gras a year ago, it’s with happy thoughts. It was a gorgeous winter day, much like today. The sun was out and it was warmer than it had been. That brought an energetic vibe to everyone we encountered. My older daughter was in her first semester of in-person classes at the local community college as part of her dual enrollment program. That left my younger daughter and me with a few hours to while away, often sitting in the library and knocking out her classes.
On this particular day, completely for kicks and giggles, she and I were wearing Mardi Gras beads that I had from a party several years ago. The day was so gorgeous that we couldn’t stand being stuck in the library after weeks of cold, grey weather. (Sound familiar?) We decided to take a walk around downtown Wilmington, going down to Cape Fear Spice Merchants and exploring various small shops in between.
I won’t bore you with every place we visited. We dropped in on a local bookseller who asked about my soap business. When I told her I was writing a book, she said to let her know when it’s out so she can buy it and stock it. I wasn’t prepared for that! I just happen to like this lady and her shop, but hello, elevator pitch–before my book was even finished! We explored a new-to-us small grocery with bulk spices and herbs and got ice cream (yeah, it was that warm). We smiled at people and said “hi.” We held hands and acted a little silly and just had a wonderful time.
As we’re home today, nowhere near downtown, we remember that day fondly. It was certainly a very different Mardi Gras from what today looks like. A lot of those businesses are operating under very limited hours. The bookshop only allows browsing a couple of days a week. By all accounts, downtown is more like a ghost town with very few people out and about on their lunch hours since so many people are working from home or have lost their jobs altogether.
Mardi Gras–Fat Tuesday–is the day before Lent, a time of sacrifice and reflection before Easter. When we’ve sacrificed so much that we used to take for granted, things like communal worship, hugs, social time, even sitting in the library to read, it’s hard to think of what else we can sacrifice. Some people have had to sacrifice family time (thank you front-line workers!) and their health. Others have lost loved ones due to the virus. When put that way, what else do we have to give up?
Instead of subtracting something from our lives this Lenten season, why not add to them? What if we were to spend Lent reading books or other materials that will serve to help us love God and others better? What if we were to add prayerful meditation to our days where we sit in silence and listen for God to speak? Or what if we were to learn how to do something that will benefit someone else in the Kingdom of God? Or, how about we pray for a different person each day of Lent, no repeats?
This Lenten season is definitely much different from last year’s. If you’re like my family, you probably felt like it was some crazy sort of hyper-Lent where you were sacrificing something new every day of Lent without intention or prayerful forethought. We will make the best of this, using the space of covid-induced sacrifices to be mindful of new ways to love God and love others.
