Dear Family and Friends,

A week ago the Karnival season ended with an abrupt stop—and the fasting season has begun.

Traditionally, the Fastenzeit, literally translated into “Fasting Time”, is the six weeks preceding Easter. It served historically two purposes: it reminds us of the weeks Christ spent in the wilderness without food and water, communing with God. On the other hand, it is supposed to be a time of reflection and Buse, or repentance with reparation—displayed by prayer and fasting combined with mercy and charity.

It is originally a Christian tradition which has been assumed by a large percent of the population, regardless of religion or confession. These weeks have become a time to reduce consumption in life—and it is no longer limited to food and drink.

Food & Drink

Still one of the most popular and traditional styles of fasting is eliminating a type of food or drink from the diet. Some see this as an option for rebooting the body after a long season of celebrations, balls and holiday meals.

Some examples are:

Coffee and caffeinated tea,

Alcoholic drinks—except beer in Bavaria—but that is topic all its own. Hmmm…

Sugary and/or carbonated drinks

Red meat

Fatty foods—no fries, sigh

Salty foods—that means no pretzels

Leavened bread

Sweets and candy

Chocolate—may be sweet, but it deserves its own place in fasting

Cakes and other desserts

Lifestyle

Popular today is also “lifestyle fasting”. In today’s world, we are overwhelmed with things and influences. Pollution doesn’t only mean smog and clogged waterways, it is also noise, light and information. Some chose to use this time to refocus their lives and ban things that cause them to lose focus in life.

Some examples are:

Cell phones—while many are needed for work, the ability to limit when and where we can be reached. Texting or using Whatsapp is limited. Or simply turning off the phone at a certain hour or place.

Social media—limiting the time spent on social media sites or even taking a break from reading or posting in them

Television and Radio—turning off the animation and returning to conversation with loved ones.

Personal

Another form of fasting is “personal fasting”, or the fasting from behaviors. I first read about this when I was living in Salzburg. The purpose of fasting with a focus on the person is in acknowledging the weaknesses we all have and choosing to “fast” from those habits and replace them with new ones.

It actually makes sense. The fasting period is six weeks long. That is the time needed to make a lifestyle change a long-term habit.

Some examples of habits are:

Sleeping in—getting up earlier and/or going to bed earlier

Eating out—making a conscious decision and effort to prepare food at home maybe to save money or eat healthier

Going out and partying—reducing the amount of money and time spent going out for drinks or partying with friends at all hours

Some examples of thoughts and emotional responses are:

This is more difficult. Each person chooses what they feel comfortable fasting from and some make decisions to change the decisions they make and the actions they take. When writing about these ideas, one sentence is not sufficient to deal with all the aspects of each point.

Negative thinking—choosing to focus on the positive instead of the negative

Judgement—choosing to make an effort to look at others more openly and accepting

Anger—choosing to avoid situations that cause angry outburst and working on recognizing the emotion without acting on it

Hate or Disapproval—choosing to gain information that would make it easier to practice a life of tolerance, if not approval

This year Thomas and I are not actively fasting. I think if I proposed getting rid of the chocolate in the house, Thomas might quite possibly have a break down. I don’t feel up to eliminating that coffee addiction I nurse.

I think I am going to fast from fasting for once. In years past, I would make a commitment to fast. It was like my New Year’s Resolution. I would sometimes succeed, and sometimes fail. Sometimes it was easy and other times it was just too hard. This year, I think I need to fast from my own expectations of myself that I just never quite seem to meet.

The question that remains is: are you fasting? What would you want to let go of in your life today?