Slackened sails

The doldrums is a real place. In the equatorial region of the Atlantic Ocean, the wind can be absent for days or even weeks. For ancient mariners depending on full sails, the doldrums was a dangerous place. The crew faced the possibility that they would run out of fresh water and food. Sometimes, everyone on the ship died before the winds finally came. Without any living people to guide it, this floating grave would become stranded on some shoal or reef.

Because of this place of nautical lethargy, the doldrums has been used as a description for a chapter in the human condition. Neurological issues aside, the doldrums is a time of little energy and no motivation. While the demands of life can force us to stay on task, the doldrums is when everyday duties beyond our day jobs languish without much attention.

The doldrums of Lent is more than a sink filled with unwashed dishes. It is more than weariness from a long winter. It is a season of disinterest with the spiritual disciplines of Lent. It is not boredom. It is the deadly sin of sloth — a laziness about our lives of faith.

Particularly during the Lenten season, we are invited to be more conscious of the sins we commit as well as the sins of omission. It is the latter that results in the doldrums of