I don’t understand Groundhog Day, not being American. I thought, because of the movie, it meant the same things happening over and over: one day endlessly repeated. But Frank Tassone, using it as a poetry prompt at dVerse, tells us it’s the day when the behaviour of a groundhog is used to forecast either coming Spring or a return to Winter.
Puzzling. Spring always arrives, doesn't it, sooner later?
But then he connects it to the Christian holiday, Candlemass, which he tells us is about anticipating when to plant seeds. Aha! so the ‘sooner or later’ of Spring’s arrival is the point.
I look up Candlemass for more detail. Instead, Google takes me straight to an account of the Pagan festival of Imbolc.
Ah yes, same date. Now I get it! (Sometimes one has to dive a little deeper.)
That, however, is not quite the end of the story. Not for me. Here in Australia we have just come out the other side of a heatwave – not the only one we’ll get this Summer, I fully expect. Here, we are six months away from Imbolc. We have been celebrating Lughnasadh (aka Lammas). Well, some of us have. For Pagans, it’s a time to be thankful for the bounty of nature and the gifts from agriculture.
If we were to have a Groundhog Day here, it couldn’t be now.
late summer –
we celebrate with bread
the good harvest
I am glad you finish with harvest and celebrate 'our' place in the universe- Jae
ReplyDeleteThank you Jae, I'm glad you're glad.
DeleteThe juxtaposition of myth and faith yes is puzzling
ReplyDeleteThanks for dropping by my blog
Much love
I tend to think they are different ways in which people understand the same thing.
DeleteI had to google, and realized how much these midpoints mattered (and sometimes still matter) around the world when it comes to seeding etc... We have an old text called bondepraktikan (farmer's almanack) that have these saying for all these days.
ReplyDeleteFood is so very basic and necessary. I think we can get too far away from the basics and forget what is vital.
DeleteSame here, Rosemary. I also thought Groundhog Day meant the same things happening again and again, and we all know that spring always comes around – we don’t need a groundhog to tell us that. I’m more drawn to Imbolc. As ever, it’s amazing to think of you on the other side of the world celebrating Lughnasadh and harvest, and enjoying the heat of late summer, while we shiver.
ReplyDeleteYes, same in reverse. I am reading about the snow in New York, for instance, happening right now, and being amazed by that.
DeleteDon't you love when a prompt pushes you to take a deeper dive? I certainly enjoyed this pearl of a haibun.
ReplyDeleteThank you for those kind words!
DeleteLove your story, and the haiku!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Sara.
DeleteYes, heat wave here again this week in the west. I latched onto the line spring comes sooner or later - it marches to its own tune in my experience, so yes. I like the details of your research too, lamas indeed.
ReplyDeleteGlad you related to this, thank you.
DeleteWe have a few as well.. in January to celebrate the harvest. (No groundhogs but some bull racing) And in March, the arrival of spring up north. And a few weeks later, the lunar new year. All connected with seasons and moon phases. All delightful with excellent food!! :)
ReplyDeleteThat's very nice to know and contemplate.
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