On the Eve of Candlemas

(Remembering that, in the old tradition, the calendar day begins at sundown).

Here's a bit of religious trivia: Groundhog Day coincides with the Christian holiday Candlemas (literally, "candle festival"). It's not one of the more prominent holidays on the calendar, but it, too, was recycled from a pagan sabbat - Imbolc, marking the midpoint (roughly) between the winter solstice and the vernal equinox. In other words, we're halfway to spring already!