Ash Wednesday is Weird

Today is Ash Wednesday, a bit of a strange day to both those who practice the Catholic faith, or another religion which observes this day, and those who don't. Even though I've grown up with this tradition and have had a priest press his thumb into a dish of ashes and proceed to smudge them in the shape of a cross on my forehead every year of my life, it still seems a bit, well, unusual, maybe even unsettling. However, the words said by the priest are intended to startle. "Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return." I mean, it's weird and unconventional. This is the one day during the year where I'm starkly told, "Look, you're made from nothing but dirt, and someday you'll be nothing but dirt and worm food in the ground again."

I didn't take this one, but I like it and I found it on the interweb. :)

 It's a scary thought; one that might not make a person terribly fuzzy inside. I mean, where's the happy-go-lucky Heaven talk that we're used to? No one WANTS to think about death. We trot blissfully along, sharing our memes on Facebook, complaining because we missed the last episode of The Bachelor, and making our Dunkin' runs each morning, griping about how slow traffic is on the way.
We just had Valentine's Day, with all these cute, albeit overpriced, pink cards, and giant stuffed animals and thoughts of love, romance, and gushy-mushy feeling-ness. Then, BAM! Ash Wednesday sneaks in so quickly that we could miss it if it weren't for the fact that someone's telling us we're going to die. (Not exactly my favorite self-esteem booster!)

"Carpe Diem" Taken in Warner, NH

  And yet, I know that without a doubt, this is, in fact, one of the most important days of the year, because if it weren't for that oh-so-strange tradition of wearing a cross of ashes upon my forehead once a year, when else would I stop and consider that life is short; that I could die tomorrow; that nothing is certain in this world and that maybe I need to love a little more? Sure, Valentine's is the day that claims to be all about love, but in many ways, I think Ash Wednesday is the better reminder of  how to love. I'm not talking about the Taylor Swift "Cherry lips, crystal skies" kind, or even better her, " You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess" stuff. I'm talking about loving that guy at work whose voice grates on you like nails on a chalkboard, or the girl who doesn't wear enough deodorant; about having a sincere compliment for that student who always seems a bit down at school, or saying hello to that guy you usually avoid because his Facebook posts are all about cats. It's the tough love that Ash Wednesday reminds us of, saying "Wake up! You have only a tiny, tiny piece of time to love and give and when you're tired, to give some more!"
So yes, Ash Wednesday is weird; weird and beautiful, and absolutely necessary in this world of superfluous, silly, and stodgy happenings. It reminds us of the simple fact that we are human, that we are mortal, and that life will be over in the blink of an eye.