Is spring just around the corner? The bear will come out of its cave and will predict it! According to popular belief on the 2nd of February the bear will come out of its cave for the first time to see whether the harsh winter is over or not!
This day is the Purificatio Beatae Mariae Virginis aka presentation of Jesus at the Temple, celebrated by many Christians. But the bear has only one intention: to find out how long winter is going to last.
The bear emerges from the cave, looks around and will see its shadow, because there is a beautiful sunny weather, the snow melts, the sky is spring blue, birds are singing, he will go back to the cave, and sleep for another 40 days. The winter will be long and harsh, the winds of spring are not yet flooding the waters.
However, if the bear will not see its shadow, the weather is unfriendly, cold winds are blowing, grey clouds cover the sun, he will happily walk around as the spring is just around the corner!
By the way: always remember, that bears are not a toy. Watch out and be careful if you are roaming the woods of Transylvania. This region has the biggest population of brown bears in Europe.
Interesting fact: bears do not necessarily sleep in caves! They often build their own nest by gathering around a bunch of branches, and they will often scrape a hole and sleep in that or just lay on the branches.
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With love,
FROM TRANSYLVANIA