Most Redondo students could not fathom adding something into their already busy routine. Several students, however, observed Lent by doing just that. Lent is a 40 day period where Christians either give something up, or add something in order to honor the sacrifice that Jesus made when he was crucified. Freshman Charly Soria found her addition to be fulfilling.
“[Lent is about making a sacrifice, but] it’s also about trying to do something good for yourself, so I made myself clean my room every single night before I went to bed,” Soria said. “I used to give up the same thing every time: junk food. But once Lent ended, I would go back to eating whatever [I wanted]. I was considering not doing anything for Lent this year, but I decided to change it up, which really benefited me. Even though Easter has passed, I’m still doing it, so it helped me implement good habits. I’m glad I did it because it helped me be better.”
Freshman Romina Delgado also decided to add something into her routine. For Lent, she made it her goal to pray every day.
“I tried to pray more because I felt like I didn’t do it as much as I should,” Delgado said, “I fell out of the habit because it started to feel repetitive and forced. But I thought that since [Lent] is a very spiritual time, I should try to get closer to God.”
According to Delgado, she has made her prayers feel more meaningful by focusing them on things she deeply cares about and by always looking for reasons to be thankful.
“[I think of praying] as a conversation. I talk about my day and problems that I’ve had or good things. Even if I had a bad day, there’s always something to be grateful for. [For example], I woke up in my warm bed, and some people don’t have that,” Delgado said, “[Praying everyday has] made me feel more connected, and it’s something that I like doing now.”
According to Delgado, praying more has helped her feel fulfilled. Similarly to Soria, she has decided to continue it in her routine. Freshman Grace Hawkins found her connection by giving the same thing up as the rest of her congregation.
“Every year, my whole church collectively gives up the word ‘hallelujah’,” Hawkins said, “On Easter [we all gather] and yell ‘hallelujah.’ It’s symbolic because the word ‘hallelujah’ is joyous. By giving it up, we are giving up [the joy we get from church] and being mindful of this mournful period.”
Churches typically take a more somber approach with their worship songs and readings during the season of Lent. Hawkins’ church, Ascension Lutheran Church, creates this mournful mood visually as well.
“[In my church,] we have blue stained-glass crosses,” Hawkins said. “They are gorgeous and have so much color, especially at sunset when the light is coming through them. But during Lent, we get the room as dark as we can and cover the crosses with black drapes. There’s very little light shining through them and it creates a dimmer mood and makes you feel more mournful.”
On the Easter Vigil, which is the first official celebration of Jesus Christ’s resurrection from the dead, they take the black drapes down and switch them with white drapes. According to Hawkins, it radically changes the atmosphere. People also switch from the darker colors worn leading up to the Easter Service, to bright, flowery dresses, and according to Hawkins, the color scheme feels very joyous.
“Our church goes all out to make the Easter service beautiful,” Hawkins said. “[We have a sunrise service,] and it’s really cool to watch the sun come up while listening to worship songs. It feels very spiritual. Everyone in the church collectively comes together and decides that we’re all going to go to church, we’re all going to bring our kids, we’re all going to sing songs and we’re all going to have fun. It feels very unifying when everyone’s sitting together in the sanctuary; we’re all here for one purpose.”
