Ash Wednesday

 

Yesterday was the fun of Fat Tuesday.  Unfortunately that means today is Ash Wednesday and Lent has begun.  Twice in the midwest I gave up meat for the whole of Lent, which is 40 days if you are not familiar with it.  Of course that was in the Catholic sense, so I could still eat seafood of all kinds, and things like eggs and dairy were acceptable (I'm not a vegan), so it wasn't that difficult.  I officially gave up all the meats I could think of- beef, lamb, pork, chicken, turkey, even rabbit, as I had that a few times in Italy.  That still leaves many many options for food, so I was in no danger of starving.  I did have a problem when I went with a group of art students across the Mississippi for a meal at a hole in the wall Mexican restaurant, assuming there would be at least one seafood or vegetarian option on the menu.  No such luck- it was just a mom and pop (she was in the kitchen, he was the greeter) and they only had 5 items on the regular menu, all forbidden by my pledge.  However, there was a special that night, and I hadn't given that up, goat.  Cooked, seasoned, diced, and served (with chopped vegetables) in a way to make small tacos.  So I got by on a technicality, but the following year I added goat to my list of forbidden foods.  There were ways to get by.  Takeout options in town included falafel, tofu, and the best pizza in town was a deep dish with tomato chunks and extra cheese.  And I cooked, so even more options there.

Once upon a time, all Fridays were meatless, but that was changed to just Lent before I was born.  However, Ash Wednesday and Good Friday (at the end of Lent) call for both abstinence from meat, and fasting (only one meal and two snacks for the day), and the fasting is tougher in my opinion.  But I can handle a day or two, and I still won't starve.  There may be rules stating what I can eat, but no rule as to when I eat them, so I can space them at a way that makes it easier.  I suppose my current medical situation gives me an exemption (age will as well in a few decades), but I'm not one to come up with excuses to get out of commitments.  If I can handle not eating meat for 80 days, I can handle what Lent requires.

Meanwhile, if there is a question as to what this has to do with art, I have done at least one print about Ash Wednesday, as part of my Fourth of July series, and you can see it above.