I never took Imbolc very seriously until I started spending time in the Boston area in winter. Here in New Orleans, winter has two phases. The first is the warm-to-hot part, where you wonder if it's ever going to feel remotely like the season has changed, then there's the wet phase, where it rains and it's chilly. Occasionally we get a day or two where the temp dips below freezing. It's not like being up north, where folks get cabin fever by the end of January.
That's when you get a true feeling for Imbolc, when it's snowy, cold, nasty, and you really need a point where you can light all the candles and fires in the house and celebrate an "over the hump" point as far as winter goes.
So, have a blessed Imbolc, everyone, and take heart, it'll be Spring before you know it! :-)
