It's Day 1 of Authentic Lent... otherwise known as Ash Wednesday. It's -26 C and I am tired from all the snow shovelling I had to do yesterday. We had a significant dump. Maybe a foot of snow over the day, maybe a little bit more than that. I didn't have the tape measure out yet. With the wind, it's hard to get an accurate depth. In some places there are two foot drifts. Those are even more "fun" to shovel through.
This is the fifth year of Authentic Lent. Three of those five years was spent in community with Peter Rollins and the AFL participants. This year, I will travel through the next 45 days alone. If I see the view numbers on my posts gain some ground, I will assume that it is internet fuzz more than interested humans in my journey. I probably won't be notifying anyone that I am back on the blog trail. Experience has taught me that it seldom produces any feedback or community. So this year... Authentic Lent is once again the diary of my time during Lent.
This morning I read the previous Day 1 posts from the last four years. There were different takes on the beginning of the journey. Maybe I will read my blog again and catch up with my thoughts over the last four years. I don't know how the next six weeks will unfold as my fingers take to the keyboard again.
I've added a picture of a jigsaw puzzle that I am in the process of assembling. It has been a frustrating assembly for the most part, but I haven't given up on it yet. I just put it aside when I get frustrated and work on something else. I was initially attracted to the image because of it's colour and sunset image. But what's left doesn't add much colour to the puzzle. There is a lot of blue, green and brown. I don't know if it will be finished, but as I reflected on it this morning, I saw my own life in the story of this puzzle.
Life, in general, has not been an easy one to add a piece to every day. Some pieces are easier to place than others. The image doesn't give me as much hope as it used to. I feel like the best days are behind me, like the easiest pieces are behind me in the puzzle.
"Words connect with other words and that is how stories are born. Words connect with other words and that is how we share our feelings. Words connect with other words and that is the invitation for me to share my narrative." (RN September 9, 2024)
This is a quote from a book I wrote last year called "I'm Still Somewhere". There is only one hard copy of it, written and read only by me, and it sits at my desk. It has 44 chapters and one section of quotes. It sounds like a great way to spend Authentic Lent. I can read a chapter a day and then on Good Friday and Easter Weekend, I can peruse the sections of quotes I have collected at the end. Maybe I will keep up with the other four years of Authentic Lent and find some more inspiration from those readings. All I really know is that I don't know if I am ready to stop writing, just because I believe that I am the only one reading my words. I still like to write. Maybe those words I stuck together over the years don't mind being read again by the author herself.
Today is Day 1. What have I concluded? Not much. But I started. Sometimes, I just need to start and then tomorrow will be easier to continue the journey.
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