The Spirit drove Jesus into the Desert, say the Scriptures, where He experienced a period of purification and preparation.
Lent is habitual for Catholics. We regard it as akin to a time of preparation for a Marathon, a time of heightened self-discipline.
When Easter arrives, we wonder why Lent seemed so long and difficult, although it certainly is long when Lent begins in February and Easter isn’t until April, after the festive occasions of St. Patrick’s Day, some family birthdays, the Vernal Equinox, the beginnings of the soccer and baseball seasons.
It’s odd that St. Patrick’s Day always falls during Lent, as odd as it seems odd that people don’t give up alcohol for Lent, because that’s a tough one, a worthy challenge.
Lent is a time of conflict and struggle, with one’s appetites, one’s worldly nature, one’s selfish impulses.
Maybe there’s a way to spend Lent not on engaging in a war with one’s self, in a war with the world, but in trying to figure out how to live at peace with one’s self, and the world.