What Am I Doing for Lent?

What am I doing for Lent?  Zilch!  I don’t like giving things up for forty days.  Right now, I’m in the process of getting away from a religion that tells me what to eat and not eat and on what days, when to rest, etc.  I may return to that structure at a later point in my life, but, right now, I choose not to be inconvenienced by it.  Although I fasted on the Day of Atonement in the past and benefited from that spiritual activity, for example, I chose not to do so this year.  And, in my opinion, God does not love me less just because I choose to enjoy the pleasures of life rather than giving them up for a set period of time.  My personal spirituality consists of believing in God’s love for me, trying to get through each day with a fairly positive attitude, and showing love to those around me.  There are days when I am fairly successful at this, and there are days (in fact, most days) when I can do better.  While I don’t deny the benefits of Lent to people, I don’t feel that I have to observe it to be a spiritual person.