Signora Sheila

Time seems to fly by, especially as we get older. Since our return to active ministry, the to-do lists get longer, time seems shorter, and some days it’s hard to keep up. I can’t believe February is almost here. That means many people will be keeping an eye out for groundhogs (marmots) peeking out of their burrows on February 2nd, Groundhog Day!

Groundhog Day comes from an old Pennsylvania Dutch weather superstition that supposedly predicts the length of winter. According to the folklore, if the groundhog (sometimes called a woodchuck) sees his shadow, we’re in for another six weeks of winter. On the other hand, if he doesn’t see his shadow, spring is just around the corner.

No Groundhog Day in Europe

“Groundhog Day” as a holiday is unique to the USA and Canada, although the tradition was imported from German-speaking parts of Europe. But there it was the badger who predicted the weather because there are no groundhogs in Europe.

Other countries, such as Italy, also had similar traditions of predicting the weather, but bears or wolves were responsible for predicting the midwinter weather.

An Italian proverb says that at dawn on February 2, the bear emerges from his cave and looks at the sky. If it is cloudy, he leaps three times for joy, announcing to the mortals that winter has fled; if instead it is clear, he hides in melancholy, saying that there will be forty days of cold.

Keeping an eye out for bears and wolves has largely fallen by the wayside. Which is a good thing – it seems like a pretty dangerous business! Over time, the practice was abandoned, until only the saying remained.

Europe Celebrates Candlemas

Some European nations celebrate Candlemas on 2 February instead of Groundhog Day. Candlemas commemorates the presentation of the Christ child in the temple in Jerusalem (Luke 2).

In the past, people took their annual supply of candles to church on Candlemas Day to be blessed. This served as a heartwarming reminder, especially during the cold, dark winters that Christ had come to be the light of the world.

Candlemas has always had its own weather forecasting traditions, as the following proverb illustrates.

If Candlemas Day be fair and bright, Winter will have another fight. If Candlemas Day brings clouds and rain, Winter is gone and won’t come again.

A Candlemas proverb

People believed these old wives’ tales so much that fishermen refused to set sail on Candlemas Day. They were convinced that any voyage undertaken on that day would surely end in disaster.

Personally, I don’t pay attention to any of these legends. I go by what the meteorologists say. They assure us that the increased number of winter shipwrecks was probably due to the typical stormy weather of February. Bad weather that often lasts well into March, whether an animal sees its shadow or not!

I hope for a short winter, but I certainly won’t be going out to watch wolves or bears, even though we do have them in Abruzzo. I am happy to be able to watch the weather forecast from the warmth of my home!

📷 Image credits: groundhog; snowy images are mine