Lenten Reflections (No. 8) - What does Lent mean to me?

One contribution for our series of reflections on Lent is from Majella who contributed to an article in the Irish Catholic during Lent 2010 with the following questions and answers.

• Are you giving up, or taking up, anything for Lent this year. And if so, why? Lent is a time for me to review and renew my relationships. I’m going to give up reacting to situations in a defensive way and focus on listening to people more.
• Can you describe a time in the past when you have successfully completed a Lenten challenge? I did a 24hour fast and the money raised went to charity.
• And a time you have failed? When I focused on giving up sweet food based only on my own will-power!
• In your opinion, how relevant is Lent, and the idea of self sacrifice and abstinence to modern Ireland ?  Lent is often a time when our dependencies come to light. It’s a time when we can discern between what we really need and what we think we need. This can be an opportunity to let go of what is holding us back from living life to the full.

Majella.