Beyond the Byline: On Feb. 2, hope for a cloudy day

WILKES-BARRE — Wednesday, Feb. 2, is a big day. It should be celebrated by all. And we should be thankful that we have seen the great work that this celebrity performs every year.

Yes, Wednesday, Feb. 2, is George Toma’s 93rd birthday!

The Sod God, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Man, the Sultan of Sod — Edwardsville’s very own George Toma is in Los Angeles leading the team to get SoFi Stadium’s field ready for Super Bowl LVI. Toma has been the head groundskeeper for all 56 Super Bowls — prompting him to say that Wyoming Valley has been a part of every single big game.

And you thought this was about that groundhog?

Yeah, I know, Pennsylvania’s top prognosticator — Punxsutawney Phil — will again take the stage Wednesday, Feb. 2, to make his spring arrival prediction at the 136th Groundhog Day celebration.

Thousands will again travel to Punxsutawney to witness Phil as he emerges from hibernation to look for his shadow and predict either a swift spring or six more weeks of winter weather.

I am certain the crowd will enjoy this annual event, but I can tell you, the same Phil has not been at every Groundhog Day event.

And Phil is not from Wyoming Valley — they never even bring groundhogs in from all over Pennsylvania to play the role of Phil. At least the White House and Rockefeller Center bring Christmas trees in from throughout the country.

The point is, there have been many Phils and many glorious Christmas trees, but there is only one George Toma. And Toma is back at his trade — a trade he has perfected over the decades, making him the go-to guy whenever a stadium or field needs to look its very best.

So Happy Birthday Mr. Toma! And many, many more!

So let’s get back to Phil and his annual fearless prognostication.

According to the Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED), Phil and the Feb. 2 event have quite a history.

For instance:

• The first legendary trek to Gobbler’s Knob was in 1886. In early observances, the groundhog’s predictions were conducted in private wooded areas that neighbor the town.

• Presently, Phil makes his prediction in Gobbler’s Knob in front of tens of thousands of visitors and a global audience via international press and social media channels.

• Members of the Inner Circle — a mystical group of keepers sworn to uphold the grand tradition of Groundhog Day — wake up Phil from his burrow and announce Phil’s prediction.

• If Phil sees his shadow, he regards it as an omen of six more weeks of winter and returns to his hole; if not, spring is just around the corner.

DCED goes on to reveal that the Groundhog Day celebration is similar to some ethnic cultures’ belief that animals awake from hibernation on specific dates.

Early Christians celebrated Candlemas Day, when the clergy blessed and distributed candles. Roman legions, during the conquest of the northern country, brought this tradition to the Germans, who picked it up and concluded that if the sun made an appearance on Candlemas Day, an animal (the hedgehog) would cast a shadow, thus predicting six more weeks of bad weather, which they interpolated as the length of the “Second Winter.”

Pennsylvania’s earliest settlers were Germans who found groundhogs in many parts of the state. They determined that the groundhog, which resembled the hedgehog, was an intelligent animal and decided that if the sun appeared on Feb. 2, the groundhog would see its shadow and hurry back into its underground home for another six weeks of winter.

Now here’s where the legend gets interesting — during Prohibition, Phil threatened to impose 60 weeks of winter on the community if he wasn’t permitted a drink.

Then Phil spread his paws a bit into diplomacy and activism.

• In 1981, Phil wore a yellow ribbon in honor of the American hostages in Iran.

• Phil traveled to Washington, D.C. in 1986 to meet with President Reagan.

And then Phil found Hollywood.

• In 1993, Columbia Pictures released the movie “Groundhog Day,” starring Bill Murray. Since, record crowds numbering as high as 30,000 have visited Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney!

• Phil debuted on “Oprah” in 1995.

And Phil even revealed his favorite NFL team. In 2009, Phil came out of his burrow with a “Terrible Towel” in support of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ sixth Super Bowl win.

And Phil has become social media savvy — his prediction was available via text in 2010.

As of 2019, Punxsutawney is the home of 5,770 people. They are all proud of Phil and those Inner Circle members. The entire world focuses on the small town every Feb. 2.

And it all comes down to one thing — which has nothing to do with accurate weather prognosticating.

It comes down to whether it will be sunny on Feb. 2, because without the sun shining brightly, Phil can’t see his shadow.

Maybe they should hold the event at night?