If a Groundhog Could Hog Ground

     The title is a riff on the famous tongue-twister involving the woodchuck, the alternative name for a groundhog.  I actually made my own version of it by substituting every instance of "wood" with "ground" and "chuck" with "hog."  I thought it was very clever, until I heard Stephen Colbert using it once on his talk show.  I should've have done something then, but there was no way of knowing if my version was an original creation.  Still, happy Groundhog's Day.  For all of you who don't know, Groundhog's Day is the modern day equivalent of an ancient holiday, Imbolc. [Note, the spelling for some of the words mentioned today can be quite fluid.  You might find alternative spellings and even terms for many of them.  If you think there might be a mistake in the post, it just might be that we are using different sources.  Bear with me.]. Imbolc was one of the ancient 'cross-quarter'  holidays celebrated by many cultures, notably the Celtics. While some faded into history, others survived in different forms.  Many were revived, in a more-or-less traditional form, by the Wiccan community in the twentieth century.  These holidays mark the 'turning of the wheel' of the year marking the transitions of the seasons.  Four marked the start of the seasons, on the equinox or solstice when they began.  The other four marked the mid-point of the season, when the season was at its strongest and the slow decline into the next one.  Imbolc is the midwinter point.  It was adapted into the slightly more familiar Candlemas.  Somehow, in America, the holiday also became attached to groundhogs as a way to see if the rest of winter would be strong or mild.  Whatever floats your boat.  Four other of the holidays have managed to hang on into modern times.  Next in the cycle is Ostara. the first day of spring, when life renews itself.  The name was changed to Easter and attached to Christianity's biggest holiday, as resurrection and renewal are very close to each other.  Next came Beltane, the middle of spring.  It has survived as May Day, although it is more celebrated by Socialists than the average public.  The next three holidays don't really have a modern equivalent, although each is marked in kind in some way, if not in importance.  Litha is the celebration of the first day of summer.  Not really that big of a deal anymore, unless you want to join the Druids at Stonehenge.  They celebrate the same holidays too.  The next one is Lughnassa, or midsummer.  Again, there is no modern reason to celebrate such a point, unless you are a fan of Shakespeare or have to do a report on one of his comedies. You can guess which one.  The final 'forgotten' holiday is Mabon, the first day of autumn.  This marked harvest time, which is still celebrated in a fashion in many agricultural communities.  The final two holidays are still celebrated, in many ways the way they were originally.  The first of these is Samhain, the mid-autumn holiday.  This holiday was at the point of the year when the living and the dead were closest to one another.  People would dress in costume to scare or entreat the dead.  If you haven't figured it out yet, this is the basis for Halloween.  Somehow, the older traditions managed a comeback all on their own without too much help.  The final holiday of the year is Yule, the first day of winter, the time of year when darkness was at its greatest.  Yet, it also marked the birth/rebirth of light.  It was so popular and hard to stop the celebration of it that Christianity chose to 'borrow' the holiday and turned it into Christmas.  Similar significance, but not too close.  This brings us back to the groundhog, a rodent that doesn't always start coming out this time of year, but when it does, it is usually looking for a mate.  Yeah, that really puts a new spin on the holiday.