That's something the parronts gave up long ago. Actually, I think they gave up giving stuff up for Lent seven years ago, when Ollie died the day before Lent. They said they gave up their beloved son bird forever, and just weren't up to any more sacrifice. I see the point in that! We all loved and still miss Ollie. He was a great little brother, and he sang beautifully. We have Bubbles now and she's a joy, but the parronts never got back into giving up stuff for Lent.
It's not a crisis of faith. I think it has to do with the parronts discovering that they weren't getting anything out of these Lenten fasts/sacrifices, so they decided not to waste their time. Combine that with how people tend to brag about what they gave up and talk about it all the time, and it seems to this parrot that giving up stuff for Lent is more drama and theater than actual spiritual development anyway.
Not to say it's useless. It's survived over 2,000 years because it must work for somebody - just not anybody we know.
I guess the bottom line is that you have to be true to your heart and know what's right for you. If giving up the usual list of of things (caffeine, sugar, salt, sweets, red meat, social media, smoking, biting your nails, soft drinks, junk food, etc) isn't working, then don't waste your time. Try something else instead, and see if that works. For example, a couple of years ago somebody suggested to mommy that you take up some new, good habit instead of giving up a bad thing, like contributing to charity, exercising, saving money, getting organized - basically, taking back up or revamping those New Year's Resolutions. She loved that suggestion, and got a lot out of it. In fact, this year for Lent she has a goal of getting releasing her next novella (set up and due for release March 1), getting a beta read for the next novella in the series, and finishing a cross stitch pattern she's so close to getting done. I think meeting goals beats giving up stuff that's going to make you cranky anyway.
Why not try a new thing this year? It can't hurt and hey, Lent will come back next year. Like all holidays, it always comes back around, every year.
That's all today. Take care. Have a Happy Friday and a wonderful weekend.
Bye!