Endurance

Where am I?

That was my first thought upon waking this morning. It was not so much because I was still half asleep but because for the past three weeks I have not spent more than two nights in a row in my own bed. My normal weekly schedule already includes a couple of nights away from home, but add a couple of weekend (overnight) classes and a women’s weekend retreat and suddenly I’m not sure where I went to sleep.

So next week is Holy Week – already! Just about the time that Lent seems like old news, we switch into high gear. It gives me the impetus to get through to Easter.

I have had days recently when I struggled to remember exactly what my Lenten resolves were (did I give up sugar? Or was that last year? Wait – I never eat sugar anymore, that’s right). I caught the interest of people at work when they learned I gave up paper napkins and paper towels (the environmental angle was a new one for them), but then I declined the napkin and took the cupcake – oh, well.

My schedule probably has something to do with my general confusion. Since I am not sure which town I am sleeping in and whether right now I should be writing a thesis statement, preparing meeting handouts, or making a sympathy card, I probably shouldn’t be so surprised that I can’t quite remember which are my normal disciplines and which are temporary (although I plan to continue using cloth napkins at home – that’s been great).

The initial enthusiasm with which I embraced Lent has quieted down to more of an exercise in endurance… but that’s as it should be. I have a head cold starting too, which puts me in an even more subdued mood. But just a few more days and it will be Palm Sunday. Then we really can start to anticipate the light at the end of the tunnel: Easter! I’ll be so ready.