Imbolc on the First of February begins the stirring of the earth from its long winter’s sleep, and from the earth, on this Second day of February, emerges the groundhog as weather forecaster. The daylight hours of this day brings, of course, Groundhog Day, one of the few traditional weather markers we still know well. If Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow as he crawls up out of his burrow this morning (he did, by the way), there will be still forty days more of winter. No shadow? An early spring. This relates to centuries-old weather lore, like this:
If the sun shines bright on Candlemas Day,
The half of the winter’s not yet away.
And yes, today is Candlemas, the day of blessing of candles in the Church, forty days past Christmas. It is also known as Purification Day, which comes out of an old Jewish tradition: forty days after the birth of a son, mothers would go to the temple to be purified. You might think of it as renewal, fitting for this time of year, the approach to spring. And so the story goes that Mary went to the temple to be purified, carrying her newborn son, and it was there that she met the elders Anna and Simeon. Simeon recognized the child immediately as the light of the world, and this is the basis for the blessing of candles on this day, and the day’s lovely name: Candlemas.
Candlemas is for many the true close to the Christmas season. One of the finest songs for this day and for those who follow these ways is the old hymn “Jesus, the Light of the World.” Tradition would have us light every lamp in the house at sunset, even for just a few moments. You might follow that with a meal of crepes (a European tradition) or tamales and hot chocolate (a Mexican tradition).
Image: Candlemas Day by Marianne Stokes. Tempera on panel, 1901 [Public domain] via Wikimedia Commons.