This year Jenn and I are trying something a little different. Starting tomorrow we’re starting the Zero Week Challenge. For the first week of Lent we aren’t going to spend any money. None. $0.

Why are we doing this? Well, besides looking for a way to recalibrate our approach to spending and money in general, Lent starts tomorrow.

In the history of the Christian church, Lent is typically a 40-day season where in preparation for Easter Christians would adopt certain attitudes or prayer or repentance, or sometimes fasting or giving up of certain behaviors. Often a combination of new attitude and abstinence are combined, so that if you give up chocolate for lent when you crave chocolate you use the craving as a trigger to pray.

It’s a great spiritual discipline or practice, though by no means does it impute any special holiness or Christianity+.

For this Zero Week Challenge, there’s a two-fold idea. First, that we’re setting aside unintentional consumption and buying for Lent. Secondly, that in those moments we usually buy, we can turn to moments were we pray or give or reflect or any number of other practices.

Clearly there are big challenges to this. We need to have our family provided for in advance. A week without spending isn’t intended to be a week without eating or driving. So we’re filling up the gas tanks tonight and our grocery runs are complete. We’ve tried to ensure that what needs we have are covered for the next week.

I’m not sure if we’ll succeed. And I’m not sure what the impact of success would be. In fact, I’m not even sure what success would look like. Spending less money? Spending less often? Reflecting on the gap between real and perceived need?

But I am sure that for this week we’re going to try and spend no money at all. Bills that are coming up have been paid. Upcoming needs have been planned for. And whatever else comes up we’re planning on just passing on. Then we’ll see what happens. If it’s healthy and has a positive impact on our lives, we’ll probably do this again.

If you’re looking for something to try this Lent, you’re welcome to join us. You can try a Zero Week Challenge too, or just resolve to abstain from casual spending for the season. If you do, let us know.

In 1940, Americans spent about fourteen percent of their food budget on eating out; by 1975 it was up to twenty-two percent, and by 2010 it was forty-one.

Tonight at my son’s school there was a choral, orchestral and dance performance for grades k-3. As you can imagine the talent is, at best, raw. Historically that’s made all school gatherings tricky because as far as performance quality, there’s not much to work with. Granted the audience is as friendly as you can get and no one is really there for the talent anyways.

But given at most of the gatherings like this is majority of the audience isn’t there for any given performance. We sat through nine presentations before Sebastian’s group came on. What made a few of them work better than the others was the fun quotient. When the teacher programmed something fun for the kids to do the 5-minute show became instantly fun for everyone to watch. Sadly, few of those preceding 9 shows were fun. But the music teacher at his school picked songs people knew, had the kids march and dance and kept the whole thing short. Our other kids actually enjoyed the music portion because the emphasis was on fun rather than performance.

So we actually stuck around for the last group. Sure that was in part because most of the audience was gone by that part and we felt bad for the last group of kids. But she rewarded us and the final song was “Good Night” from the Sound of Music.

The whole thing was a good reminder to me. Unless your quality is truly exceptional, people will always prefer to engage with what’s fun.

Wouldn’t it be awesome if I wasn’t sick this week? Here’s to hoping a good’s night sleep help makes that dream a reality.