Lent: there is an interesting word. It seems to come from the Old English word lencten, meaning “springtime or spring”. There’s also a connection with the West Germanic langitinaz, or “lengthening of day”. Any Catholic who is serious about reforming their lives knows that somehow Lent plays – or should play – an important role. It’s in our Catholic blood. The days start to lengthen and there is that touch of spring you detect even where I live in snowy Colorado. Maybe it’s the way the birds start to sing, as Chaucer wrote: