Festival of Lights

In the modern Pagan tradition, today is Imbolc, the festival of lights. It's one of the 8 major holidays that celebrate the turning of the wheel (a.k.a. the changes of the seasons). You may also know today by the names Candlemas (the Catholic version of the holiday), or Groundhog Day. February 2 falls roughly in the middle of the winter solstice and the spring equinox, which are supposedly the first day of winter and the first day of spring. It's kind of like hump day for winter. You've gotten through the first half. Hooray! So you light a bunch of candles to brighten up the gloom, and party like it's 1999 because dammit, you've survived so far, and it's good to have a reason to celebrate.

The reality is kind of different here in Seattle. Today, I went for a walk in Discovery Park. When I started my walk, it was about 52 degrees, sunny, and beautiful. I walked until after sunset, and the temperature had dropped a good bit, but I was still comfortable without a hat on. Leaves were just starting to come out on some of the trees, one particularly hearty plant had put out some flowers, and the pussy willows had fuzzy tips. There were robins, ducks, loons, and seagulls out and about, foraging for food. It's hard to get worked up about winter when, for all intents and purposes, it's over. Oh sure, it's possible we'll get another night or two where the temperature drops below freezing, and it's still a little too early to plant most seeds outside, but really, it's spring. To that I say, "Hooray! Winter is over!!!!!" I don't care if the groundhog sees his shadow, the fact is that it's just going to get warmer and greener and more wonderful every day, and that makes my heart happy. I've lit a candle - not to help stave off the remaining winter, but to honor the return of life and to celebrate new beginnings.