Will It Work?

“Will It Work?”

Lent 2010 – Day 28; Saturday, March 20.

Deshi Ramadhani, SJ


Here we are. Busy with noble deeds: fasting, penance, and charity. What else? You name it. Looking back to the beginning of Lent, I can’t help asking myself a threatening question for a man: “Do I have what it takes?” Well, I can get rid of coffee, meat, fish; I even fast on Fridays. But still, something is missing.

I realize that there is no big enemy out there. No one is planning to entrap me. Yet the pain is there. The fear is there. I know that I’m really afraid if this Lent will turn out just like any other years. Just a bit of spiritual highs, and that’s it. Soon enough, I’ll return to my old life. Will it work this time?

Those who know me well might sneer and say: “No, it will never work! So why bother?” Deep within, I can still hear a different voice, saying: “Hang in there!”