Spring begins here in northern California

With apologies to my friends in the freezing south and northeast of the United States, around here in San Francisco, you can feel the change of season. These daffodils stuck up their heads through the weeds in our front yard.

Yesterday, we walked the beach; the sun broke through, surfers (in body suits) played in the waves, the breeze was friendly rather than freezing. 

It's often like this in early February here; we may well get a bit more winter, but we can feel the season is turning.

In the Christian tradition, this is the week of Candlemas. This festival day is a bit unintuitive to moderns: a mix of the ancient Hebrew ritual of presenting the new born male to the Jerusalem temple, the celebration of the new light (Epiphany) that the God-child brings, and northern European delight that the dark and snow is finally letting up. We are midway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. Daylight is noticeably longer. We can feel the cycle of life turning, if we are fortunate enough to be able to pay attention. Perhaps no darkness lasts forever ...