Can You See Your Shadow?

Everybody has their favorite groundhog. Mine is General Beauregard Lee, who lives (not far from my birthplace) at Yellow River Game Ranch. He agrees with my prediction that the warm weather will continue, and predicts an early spring.

It seems to me this morning that all this groundhog lore is perhaps also a lesson in self-knowledge. Can you see your own shadow? Can you predict your foreseeable future? Do you know thyself?

A lot of Pagan books talk of shadow work, of confronting our shadows. Sometimes that is as simple is learning to deal with our anger or quit smoking. Sometimes it takes on imposingly mythic dimension as the Watcher at the Gates, the Dweller on the Threshhold, or the Troll under the Bridge. You can’t scratch Pagan pathworking texts without turning up a lot of pop-psychology, of varying quality and usefulness.

Regardless of how you deal with the darker aspects of your psyche and personality, are you aware of them? Do you know what they are? Can you see your own shadow?

I think I’m pretty self-aware, but I’m going to take some time to think about this today. It’s a good thing to ponder now and again.

Here’s a dark side for you to view, and if you’re like me, it will make you want to watch this movie today:

And for the record, Punxsutawney Phil is a punk and Gobbler’s Knob sounds kind of dirty… *ducks*