It has long been a religious custom that one fasts during Lent, steering away from delightful culinary items, mainly meats and sweets. As long as you cut off the meats and sweets, you are safe and are staying within the pre-established parameters. Obviously, if you indulge in other delightful dishes such as salmon and any other type of refined fish, you are still within the “accepted” parameters.
Without wishing to degrade such beliefs and practices, there are other efforts we can make to not only become better people for ourselves, but also for the bigger community. In this article we discuss some of the things you could quit, leading to a greater good.
Quick judgement
Sometimes we are too quick in jumping the gun when classifying a person. One action which does not please us and that person immediately becomes disorganised, unreliable and excluded. Let’s be more careful when mincing our words and remember that everyone has his own story and just because some problems may be concealed, does not mean that they do not exist.
Personal hatred
We may have encountered some people who made us feel hard done by. Things will not always work as you expected in life and you will undoubtedly meet some people who will hurt and betray you. Certain actions may fill you with negativity, hatred and a need to get back at someone. Learn to move on and do not let such emotions consume and get the better of you. Whilst trusting the same person who has done you wrong is indeed inadvisable, it would be ideal to move beyond your desire of revenge and live a happier life.
Envy
There will always be someone who is better than you at something. It could be personal wealth, career, home, education or even a car. If we focus on trying to be the best at everything, we will simply not succeed and become envious at anyone who has something better than us. Life is full of up and downsides and this will always be the case.
Racism
Hatred towards a group of people due to their skin colour or because they come from a different country simply has no place in the 21st century. People who refuse to integrate and accept others simply because of race, reflects a weak society.
Lack of respect
We tend to take those closest to us a bit for granted at times. Show your loved ones the respect they deserve by spending some moments of quality, time and getting to know more about their concerns and struggles.
Lent is a special time of year where we are reminded that to achieve a certain degree of goodness, sacrifices need to be made. Make the most of it by focussing on doing more positive deeds.
