Au revoir...

{Photo credit: weheartit}

Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday, marking the beginning of the Christian holy season of Lent. I realize that you may not be religious, be Christian, celebrate Lent, but that is the reason behind this post -- although not the subject of this post.

For those of you who may not be familiar with Lent, it is 40 days of prayer, sacrifice and fasting leading up to Easter -- the celebration of Christ's resurrection. It is common practice to "give up" something for Lent to facilitate a deepening in faith. In the past I have both given up something (nagging Jed last year) and added something (praying the Rosary daily, meditating on the Bible, attending daily Mass). I tend to take my Lenten sacrifice seriously and choose to devote myself to something that will help me be a better Christian; I don't give up chocolate, in other words -- even if it would help my health.

When I realized that Ash Wednesday was this week on Sunday, I started wondering what I could do for Lent, other than the standard meat fast on Fridays. After listening to the priest's sermon at church, it came to me, maybe at God's suggestion.

I am going on a blogging fast for the next 40 days.

That's right, I am giving up blogging: writing, reading, commenting. All of it. There are a couple of reasons behind this decision that I'd like to share with you all -- my readers, who obviously find value in this blog.

The priest mentioned a digital/electronic fast: leaving the cell phone at home one day a week, not going online and spending the time in prayer or with family, giving up TV to some extent. While I cannot see myself doing any of that, pausing my life in blog world felt like the right thing to do.

I've mentioned struggling with my purpose for Nifer Musings, and I think stepping away for a bit will help me clarify that without the pressure of posting every day.

What I haven't mentioned is the nagging that blogging is slowly taking over my life. Jed sometimes complains that I spend so much time blogging and reading blogs. I do spend hours daily catching up on all your blogs and more -- careful to leave thoughtful comments when I can. I need to find a realistic, positive space for blogging in my life.

So, what am I going to do during those hours that would be spent in bloggy land? Well, I'll certainly be thinking about what I would be writing if I were blogging: developing ideas, creating a strategy for my blog, realizing which blogs I miss reading every day and those I don't notice their absence. I'll also be reading, spending time with friends, praying, living a full life offline.

They say absence makes the heart grow fonder, and I truly believe that applies to this place for me.

I hope you all understand my reason for this fast, and I hope you will all be here after Easter when I return. I can assure you that I will miss writing and reading all of your blogs. I can also say with most certainty that I will be back; I am not giving up on blogging, and my intent in doing this is not to quit.

I wish you all the best over the next month and a half. Feel free to email me and let me know what you're up to; I will not be giving up email!

{Image credit: weheartit}