The past couple of nights I have been low on energy (read: stumble in door, stumble into bed), and yesterday I was out of the office, learning how to give shots (at least I got to spend the day with my hubby, as his branch was being trained too). So, that's why it's Friday and I'm writing about Ash Wednesday.

I'd never been to church on Ash Wednesday, so I was kind of excited to tag along with Sam the other evening. I grew up in a heavily-Catholic city, but I guess most classmates went for Ash Wednesday Mass after school, or washed their foreheads before coming to school. My freshman year of college, I remember being initially confused by all the people I passed with dirty foreheads. Being a New Orleans native, but a non-Catholic, I'd been so focused on the day before being Mardi Gras (and that life in NYC was as usual), that I forgot about Ash Wednesday.

The church was pretty packed the other night - standing room only. I watched as everyone first got in lines to have the ashes crossed onto their foreheads, and then got in lines again to recieve Communion. It's very foreign to me.

I think what fascinates me most about going to church is when I think about the fact that Sam's family members, and people all across the country, have the same readings that day. I love systems - airports, the US Postal Service.... If it's efficient and well-planned, I'm all about it. It's very cool to me that the Missalettes are the same the country-over, organized by date well in advance.

The homily is different, the songs may be sung to a different tune, but if you're traveling, you won't feel too out of place going to a different church. Which is how I feel as a Baha'i, going to meetings in different cities. I wonder if that's the case for all religions.