Those of you that come from a Christian upbringing are probably familiar with the concept of Lent. If you are not Christian, no worries, this isn’t a religious blog and I am a practicing Jedi.
Lent is a Christian season that starts on Ash Wednesday (today) and culminates with Easter weekend. In modern days many use the time to “give up” something for the season. I’ve done chocolate, beer, all liquid except water and milk, desserts, vegetables : ) etc… This year I’m going a bit more extreme.
As we learn to get more comfortable with this recession, we also learn to give up things in our lives that we previously considered necessities. Cell phones, cable, restaurants, driving, we’ve all found some ways to cut back. Meat has been a staple in my diet for as long as I can remember. I mostly consume lean deli meats, fish, chicken breast, and ground beef. I eat it all regularly as well.
But there was a time in the last century when meat was hard to come by. During the great depression and WWII, meat was rationed. In the 70’s the price of meat was so high many people gave it up, or embraced cheaper alternatives like Spam. I don’t expect that this will happen again, we certainly aren’t going to have any problems with inflation for the next year, but I wanted to see what it might be like to give up meat. So for the 40 days of Lent, I will give up the consumption of meat.
Like anything good in America, Lent has a loophole in many western Christian followings. Sundays during this period are not considered a part of the season, so some people that give up something for Lent can enjoy a break on Sundays. I will likely partake in this loophole, but will limit my consumption to one serving of lean meat. This is just as much for sanity as it is for health reasons; I believe humans are omnivorous and meat offers a great resource of proteins, iron, and healthy fats.
Now the forfeit of meat in my case is simply my example of giving up something I consider a necessity. It will serve as a reminder to myself that I don’t truly need it as much as I think. I will be forced to learn to cope with the thought of not having a big juicy burger I crave, or a bacon and turkey panini from Panera Bread. My diet will have an increase in peanut butter intake, as well as baked beans.
Instead of thinking of it as Lent, just challenge yourself to give up something important to you for a month or so. What can you give up for 40 days?
Photo: Markhillary
 By The Weakonomist |
The Weakonomist is the founder of Weakonomics. Clicking the picture of the puppy will tell you more about him. If you like what you're reading consider subscribing to the blog, following him on Twitter, and checking out the related posts below. Please consider a donation if you really enjoy Weakonomics. |
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make sure to eat your dark green leafies! they’re FULL of teeny-weeny-little-good-things (including protein-hooray for spinach)!