Candlemas

Candlemas on February 2nd marks the end of the old forty day Christmas period, along with being the halfway point of Winter.

It commemorates the presentation of the infant Jesus in the temple, in accordance with Jewish tradition of the time. Any Christmas greenery that may still be up in the house, had to be down by Candlemas Eve. Not to do so was thought to invite all sorts of bad luck into the household.

It's also the day when some people predicted weather patterns. Farmers believed that the remainder of winter would be the opposite of whatever the weather was like on Candlemas Day.

If Candlemas be fair and bright,
Come winter, have another flight;
If Candlemas bring clouds and rain,
Go winter, and come not again.

So if the sun cast a shadow on Candlemas day, more winter was on the way; if there was no shadow, winter was thought to be ending soon. This practice led to the folklore behind Groundhog Day, which coincidentally falls on Candlemas!

Thanks to the Old Farmer's Almanac and Churchyear.Net for the info.

Click Groundhog Day (above) to go to the official website of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club