Groundhog’s Day
Today February 2nd, 2022 is known in the United States and Canada officially as Groundhog’s Day. A day where the emergence of a groundhog (or woodchuck) from it’s burrow is believed to predict the weather for the next 6 weeks.
This day falls roughly halfway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox and has been a significant year in many cultures.
It has held meaning and anticipation of farm animal birth and planting of crops as well as the belief that the badger and the bear paused their hibernation to appear on this day.
The belief is that if the groundhog sees it’s shadow there will be six more weeks of winter weather and if there was no shadow it was a sign that the cloudy weather would be mild and lead to an early spring.
The idea of watching animals and nature to predict or plan for the seasons is solid. Animals know their shit. But a groundhog designated Punxsutawney Phil, from Punxsutawney, that is used in a media event for a local festival is believed to be correct every year while the records indicate a correlation of less than 40%.
The thing is… a groundhog’s emergence from hibernation is thought to relate to the amount of fat they were able to store before hibernation.
Canada has a number of groundhogs that serve as weather predictors, one known as Wiarton Willie. No matter if the groundhogs emerge or not, it’s my guess from other trends of weather that winter will stick around for a while yet.
Where I am in the northern mid-west of the US, it may be -8 degrees Fahrenheit but the sun is beaming and the wind is mild. According to the lore or idea of groundhog’s day, there would be six more weeks of winter weather.
BUT! I’d like to tune into Groundhog or Woodchuck to better see what this day means to them.
After connecting to the collective energy of Groundhog, the first thing that I felt and heard was that they “have adapted with the weather and earth shifts”. Unaware of what that means, I asked some questions and heard this message…
“The importance of this day largely focuses on us but we would prefer if the focus was instead brought to the fact that humans used to be able to tune into the nature and shifts in weather themselves like they did when they lived and breathed with the earth.
We don’t mind being in the spotlight, really it gives us good attention that can transfer over to helping our health and population flourish. The care of us wild animals is important and so we don’t mind that our ways of nature have now expanded into an event.
What we wish you would take from this day is that the ability to recognize the patterns and changes of the seasons is already something you are able to do when you tune in. Many times you have felt the storm coming and smelled the rain. Many times you have seen the other animals shift and travel for winter resting spots. Humans do this too but because of the removal from nature, you depend more on us to show you. Your body needs rest like we do during this time. Focus on your energy shifts. When do you get more lively? What time of the month do you prepare to rest and nurture yourself in your home. If you don’t feel these signals and shifts within yourself, you have work to do to connect back to yourself and the seasons.” — Groundhog
It doesn’t matter if you partake in this day’s festivities or not, this day is a reminder of your own senses and your own connection to nature.