Ordinary Times

We generally have a routine that helps us do the ordinary things that make up daily life.  This routine is needed so that we can integrate some of the lessons and experiences we had during times of joy and new life, or sadness and loss.  The liturgical year has the same balance.  After the high of the Christmas season, we enter a short period of Ordinary Time.
 
During Ordinary Time the Scripture readings focus on the events of Jesus’ life between his birth and his death and Resurrection.  It is a time when we reflect on the things Jesus lived and taught so that we might make our values and attitudes more like his.  Ordinary Time is divided into two periods.  The first period is between Christmastime and Lent, and the second period is between the end of the Easter season and the next Advent.
The Catholic Faith Handbook for Youth