As we enter the season of Lent, we begin to ask ourselves how to observe a Holy Lent, says Beth Scupham, a member of the Diocese of Atlanta Commission on Spiritual Growth.

As we enter the season of Lent, we begin to ask ourselves how to observe a Holy Lent. Does it mean giving up something or someone? Deprivation? Fasting? The old words are "What are you giving up for Lent?"

Is it a state of mind, perhaps some affliction that we seek to fast from? An unwanted belief? An attitude? Should we give up a way of treating ourselves or someone else?

Perhaps there is a greater general sense of clearing the decks in a similar way to Advent. Making way, making room for what is to come. Reclaiming some spiritual space, some stillness, some silence where we can invite in some wilderness.

One of my college roommates moved out West, got a Ph.D. in photography, moved further west, bought some land about as far west as you can go in the continental U.S. and built a small house by hand in sight of the Pacific Ocean in a very remote place.

After losing track of each other for 25 or so years, we recently reconnected and spent some time together. She never married, never had children, and all of her relatives are deceased. I asked her about her life out on a shelf at the edge of the state of California.

She said that her question to herself began as, "What is absolutely necessary?" and "What can I do without?" When the question then became "What do I need?" the answer was, "Not much." Her house lacks heating, air-conditioning and refrigeration. She says she doesn't miss any of these. Her small home does have minimal electricity, a wood-burning stove and no TV.

Her life revolves around the life of the natural environment around her, her artwork, home maintenance, food growing and preparation, reading, writing and teaching, and her own practice of silence and listening.

When life gets scaled back to the essentials, we are free to ask ourselves similar questions about the Ground of Our Own Being. What is absolutely necessary? What can I do without? What do I need? The who and the what that fills in the blanks to those questions begin to lead us into the Lenten season of making space for a deepening of our walk with God.

Elizabeth Scupham is a member of the Diocese of Atlanta Commission on Spiritual Growth. A former actress, choreographer, minister and counselor, she is a licensed massage therapist and spiritual director in Dunwoody. A member of St. Patrick's Episcopal Church, she is an Education for Ministry mentor and teaches Reiki, yoga and other healing arts. Scupham also publishes a web log called "Alive on All Channels," which can be found at http://allchannels.blogspot.com.