This year, Valentine’s Day wasn’t just a time to celebrate those we love, but it was also the first step of a long walk away from the things we’ve grown to love.
Valentine’s happened to fall on Ash Wednesday: the beginning of a 40-day fast from anything you choose called Lent. These 40 days (excluding Sundays) are meant to honor and imitate Jesus during his long fight with temptation in the desert before he was crucified and later resurrected on Easter Sunday.
Lent is a predominantly Catholic practice, but Christians of all denominations and those of non-religious foundations participate as well. The final day of Lent varies from person to person and group to group; some stop fasting on Easter Sunday while others wait until the Thursday before.
I am not the religious type, nor have I ever been. But I have undergone all 34 days (and counting) of holy abstinence in an effort to push my limits and cleanse my body of the excess I’ve given it. The process has been extremely illuminating as a result.
Sarah Hernandez is a Journalism major at Fresno State who has been practicing Lent since they were about eight years old. They were raised Catholic and used to fast in honor of religion, but continues to do so for health benefits.
“I gave up soda a few years ago during Lent, and I felt so much healthier. I wasn’t getting sick, I was drinking more water, I could see a change in how I felt, and there were a few years there where I stopped drinking soda altogether because of how much healthier I had been during Lent,” Hernandez said.
This year, Sarah has given up drinking Tea. I have given up a few things; burgers, fries, hot dogs, and marijuana. I wouldn’t say that I overindulge myself with these things, but I definitely feel healthier without them. I’d be lying though, if I said the cravings were always easy to bury.
The thought that I keep coming back to when the urges grab hold of me, is that hundreds of thousands of people are able to do this. Therefore, I should be able to as well. Even with fast food on every corner and disposable pens everywhere I turn, I’ve had to be my own personal advocate which is harder than I initially thought.
“I wanted to challenge myself every single year to practice Lent, even though I’m not really religious anymore. But I still do it so I can see my willpower and show how strong of a person I can be to give up something I really like,” Hernandez said.
As the weeks have gone by, it’s become a lot easier to ignore the cravings, and I don’t think I’ll be that eager to give in to them once it’s all said and done. Once Lent wraps up, you can choose to break the fast or continue it however you see fit. While I plan on pigging out with my friends at In-N-Out Burger once it’s over, I know this process has heightened my self-awareness when it comes to how I eat, so I’m going to continue to listen to that voice more moving forward.
