Berwick Thought for the Week: Lengthening days in a Leap Year

John Byrom, an English poet, Balthus the French painter and Rossini the Italian composer were all born on February 29th. How their lives have enriched ours.

Pope Paul III too was born on February 29th, but so also was Aileen Wuornos.

Paul influenced the world and the church for good. Aileen did the opposite and is remembered because she was a serial killer who murdered at least seven, possibly eight, people in America in 1989-90.

What will you do with this extra day? Will it be a gift of time that you will use for reflection or celebration? This year, February 29th falls in the middle of Lent, which itself comes from the Anglo-Saxon word lencton meaning the time of year when the days grow longer.

And, of course, ‘lent’ is also the past tense of the verb ‘lend’ reminding us that Feb 29th like all our days is only lent to us. One of the psalms in the Bible asks God to teach us to number our days that we might apply our hearts to wisdom.

So whether we are observing these 40 days between Ash Wednesday and Easter Day as the early Christians did with fasting, prayers and self-denial, or whether we use these extra hours of daylight as an opportunity to re-set our daily rhythms and patterns of living so that we will be healthier and happier, why not see today, 29th February, as a day lent to us this year to use well – to reflect on our mistakes and to read some poetry, listen to music or go to an art gallery and allow all that to influence our lives for good.

Revd Charlotte Osborn, Priest in Charge in Lowick with Kyloe and Ancroft, Ford and Etal