Hang the Mistletoe and pucker up!
Mistletoe is also known as the golden bough and once held sacred by Celtic Druids and Norseman. The potent plant was once called Allheal and used in folk medicine and Native Americans used it for toothache, measles and dog bites. In Scandinavian antiquity it a peace plant. If enemies met by chance beneath it in a forest, they agreed on a truce until the next day.
5 days after the New Moon following winter solstice, Mistletoe was used by the Druid priesthood in a special ceremony. Mistletoe would be cut from a holy oak tree with a golden sickle and the branches caught before they hitting the ground. The branches were divided into many sprigs and given to people to hang over their doorways for protection a against thunder, lightning and other evils. Over the years, the magic of this plant has taken many forms such as placing a sprig in a baby's cradle to protect the infant from faeries. Or giving a sprig to the first cow calving after New Year to protect the herd.
But how did it come to mean a kiss?
Although many sources say that kissing under the mistletoe is an English custom, there's another explanation for its origin. In Norse mythology there is a story of a loving, if overprotective, mother.
Frigga was mother to the Norse god Balder, the best loved of all the gods. Frigga was the goddess of love and beauty and she loved her son. To ensure no harm would come to him, she went through the world securing promises from everything that sprang from the four elements--fire, water, air, and earth--that they would not harm her beloved Balder.
Leave it to Loki, a mischievous spirit, to find the loophole. Mistletoe and an arrow made from its wood. To make the prank even nastier, he took the arrow to Hoder, Balder's brother, who was blind. Guiding Holder's hand, Loki directed the arrow at Balder's heart, and Balder fell dead.
Frigga's tears became the mistletoe's white berries. In the version of the story with a happy ending, Balder is restored to life, and Frigga is so grateful that she reverses the murderous reputation of Mistletoe--making it a symbol of love and promising to bestow a kiss upon anyone who passes under it.
Information gleaned from numerous online searches for mistletoe lore.
Those who leave a comment today will be entered to receive a digital download. I’ll choose a winner for every 10 comments posted. 30 comments = 3 winners so spread the word about the Christmas Ride blog event. (see end of this blog post for choices of ebooks)
Your next stop on this Christmas Ride is Meagan Hatfield http://www.meaganhatfield.blogspot.com/
And if you’ve missed stops or have gotten lost along the way, here is where the ride has been spreading Christmas cheer. Collect the songs to enter the grand prize drawing. One lucky person will win a $75 Wild Rose Press gift certificate! All you need to do to enter is attend each day's blog post, identify the carol, and make a complete carol list to submit after the final blog post of Christmas Eve. Don't forget to check the list twice! Send it to Christmasrideblog@live.com by midnight, CST Dec. 31st 2008!
Here is the hint (lyrics) to my song choice for the grand prize. Good Luck in the contest.
Oh, you'll be my spring ahead, my fall behind
The shimmy on my hips oh when I, bump and grind
You'll be my Santa Boy, all dressed in red
And ride that little reindeer all through my head
Oh, ooh, here we go, oh yeah
This year I'm gonna take you home
This year I don't wanna be alone
Nov 29 PL Parker - http://plparker.blogspot.com/
Nov 30 Lynn Reynolds - http://lynnreynolds.blogspot.com/
Dec 1 WRP - http://thewildrosepress.blogspot.com/
Dec 2 Michele Hart - http://michelehart.blogspot.com/
Dec 3 2 today! - Teri Wilson - http://www.freewebs.com/teriwilson/terisblog.htm
Elaine Cantrell - http://www.elainepcantrell.blogspot.com/
Dec 4 Roni Adams - http://thewildrosepress.blogspot.com/
Dec 5 Stacy Dawn - http://www.stacydawn.blogspot.com/
Dec 6 Susanne Saville - http://myblog.susannesaville.com/
Dec 7 Beth Caudill http://bethcaudill.blogspot.com/
Today’s winners can choose from
Delicious Darkness,
Hot Blooded,
The Cougar Meets Her Master,
Eternal Rapture, or
All Lycan’s Eve
For non-erotic titles, winner could choose any title from Lisa Dawn MacDonald
Marion’s Train,
Secret Surrender,
Wild Fires,
Crashed
Please list your email address in your post or check back Tuesday morning for the winners.
