Tomorrow is Ground Hog Day!

These are NOT groundhogs, obviously! I cannot begin to imagine how to secure an original photo of a groundhog, but I felt a need to mark the day.

There are birds in evidence of the impending Spring season. Nature is beginning to awake and the seeds of a new season, and another year, are being sown. Birds have begun to sing and gather. Bulbs have poked their tentative green shoots up into the frozen soil. Buds of new growth on the trees are in evidence on limbs and the sun has renewed the hope of all who bask in it's thin winter warmth. It is the promise of life continuing into the future; the promise of flowers in the Spring and fruit in the Summer. As someone very famous once said, if winter comes, can spring be far behind?

Those of us who live in these lands of seasons are encouraged each year by the evidence of nature and enjoy each bit of progress. It may seem trite to those of you who live in the homogenous land of perpetual sun and warmth, but we actually enjoy remarking to one another about the weather. It is always the one thing all of us have in common. And having something in common with those around you is not a thing to be taken for granted.

Groundhog Day is a mark in the progress towards Spring. My staff has decided to have a Ground Hog's Day party. None of us know quite how to celebrate, but celebrate we will, and I'm sure it will involve food and lots of fun.