Dust

Today is Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. It's the 40-day season that many Christians set aside to prepare spiritually for the commemoration of Jesus' Last Supper, suffering, death and resurrection.

Receiving ashes on one's forehead is an important part of Ash Wednesday for many people. In the Catholic tradition, the person distributing ashes most often states "remember you are dust and to dust you shall return" when making a cross on each foreheard. Deacon Greg meditates on these words in his homily today.

A Concord Pastor has posts with prayer, scripture and other details for the day and the season. Aggie Catholics has a "Lent 2009 mega post." And, The Anchoress has two posts for Ash Wednesday and Lent.

I'm giving up bagels and cream cheese again this year as part of my Lenten observance. (Quickly grabbing a New York bagel from Zaro's in Grand Central is a cherished part of my weekday morning commute to Yonkers.) I'm also going to work harder at being more patient with someone in my professional life who I often find frustrating.

Please pray for me.

Flashbacks: Ash Wednesdays 2007 and 2008.

The image above is from Sully. It is credited to Luis Liwanaga/AFP/Getty.