Giving Lent a lengthening hand

These are the most common things Irish people tend to give up for the 40 days: 1. Cigarettes 2. Alcohol 3. Swearing 4. Clothes shopping 5. Chocolate 6. Takeaways 7. Favourite TV shows 8. Gambling 9. Internet 10. Mobile phone usage While this list appears to be very worthwhile in terms of improving our health and our wellbeing, just like New Year resolutions, how possible is it to extend our 'sacrifices' beyond Easter Sunday? Chocolate is one of the greatest pleasures of life and the more I hear it is bad for us, the more likely I am to buy the bigger pack with the two extra free! I love chocolate as I do tea but I am not addicted to the point where I feel I need to surrender it all to Lent. Lent is the period of 40 days which comes before Easter in the Christian calendar. Beginning on Ash Wednesday, it is a season of reflection and preparation before the celebrations of Easter (and the indulgence of chocolate for weeks on end). Lent can be seen as a time of sacrifice, when we give up or cut out what we love the most and see it through to Easter Sunday. One of the definitions given to the word 'Lent' is derived from Old English lencten, meaning 'spring', the lengthening of days after winter is over. Spring, as we know, is a time of birth and life. The 'sacrifice' associated with the 40 days of lent, if we look at it this way, seems harsh and unrelated. New Year and Lent is, no doubt, a great incentive to look at our eating and social patterns and make a conscious decision to change them. But what happens post-Easter Sunday? Wouldn't it be wonderful if we all took a worthwhile vow of some sort and extended it further into the spring and possibly the summer? One person told me they were giving up using a knife and fork for Lent and instead embarking on the 'chopstick' route. I thought this was a wonderful idea, as it can be viewed as embracing someone else's culture. Another person told me they were giving up 'frustration'. We could all do with working on patience and letting go. Instead of viewing our Lenten campaign as one of a sacrifice, see it as a surrendering campaign to what we feel is needed to improve our quality of life. The ancient philosophical teachings of yoga ultimately carry one meaning - to surrender or let go. In other words, don't push or force yourself continuously against the strong wind of life but surrender to and let the wind carry you to where you are supposed to be. Have trust in your campaign. Check out The Yoga Room's brand new interactive website for ashtanga and pregnancy yoga classes. See www.yoga-meath.ie