Who Are the Yule Lads?

Line Count: 97

Who Are the Yule Lads?

Seething blizzard with a whiteout landscape,

Untamed wind builds mountains of snow,

The sky is scattered with ebony clouds.

Only sign of life is the ice-cold figure plodding,

Through snow, dragging a lumpy sack.

No trail is made since; the elements are in her favour,

Covering all traces, as she passes by.

The sack jumps around unnoticed by the frozen figure.

On, and on, she continues on.

Where could she go with such a burden?

Nothing else except this mysterious woman,

Battling the elements on her own,

Moving determinedly to her destination.

Gryla, the Ogress of Iceland,

Returning home after one of her

Random trips to some far-off village.

She lives in the mountains

With her Christmas cat,

Her troll husband,

And her gang of thirteen sons.

Hideously, deformed face with

Claw-like hands is her hideous appearance.

Very few humans have seen her,

And lived to tell the tale.

The sons are named, The Yule Lads of Christmas.

These lads have not inherited their mother’s evil,

Instead they create a different kind of mischief.

They will steal anything that is not nailed down

And they will also reward well-mannered children.

The Yule Lads are not all bad.

Thirteen days leading up to Christmas,

These lads go one by one,

From the mountains to the villages of Iceland.

Let`s introduce the Lads to ye.

Sheep-Cote Clod, harasses sheep,

Struggling to get around on his peg leg,

He fumbles around the town.

Gully Gawk is next in line.

In gullies he hides in wait,

At the first sight of his opportunity,

To sneak in the cowshed, stealing milk.

Stubby, is a curious one.

He likes the crust left on a pan.

Make sure you wash all your dishes,

If not, this visitor will do the job for you.

Spoon-Licker, big surprise, likes spoons.

In particular, a long wooden spoon,

Is the favourite choice of his daily meal,

This causes him to suffer, malnutrition.

Pot-Scraper is another reason to make sure,

All dishes are kept in clean condition.

He enjoys scraping the leftovers,

With his teeth and swallows them in his belly.

Bowl-Licker is a clever beast,

Hiding under beds in wait,

When their bowl is placed on the floor.

He proceeds to steal it for himself.

Door-Slammer, is a tricky sort,

Making you think there is a ghost running amok.

Slamming doors in the middle of the night,

Waking the house up in a fright.

Skyr-Gobbler, has a particular liking to skyr,

Which is a cultured dairy product.

Once he gets his hands on his,

Favourite treat, is gobbled immediately.

Sausage-Swiper, loves his meat.

Hiding in the rafters in rooms,

Where sausage resides.

He lies in wait for the perfect moment to pounce.

Window Peeper, is voyeur looking through,

People`s windows for anything to steal.

When he sees something he likes,

Like a thief in the night, he snatches his treasure.

Doorway-Sniffer, has an abnormally large nose,

With an acute sense, of the traditional,

Icelandic bread, which is his favourite.

He devours it at first sight.

Meat-Hook is an interesting sort,

Waiting and stalking his prey,

Using his hook to steal all kinds of meat.

Giggling to himself about his new found treat.

Candle-Stealer, likes to follow children,

Lying in wait for the perfect opportunity

To strike, stealing their candles.

Made of tallow they are a favourite meal.

Now that you have been introduced to the Yule Lads,

When the twelve day countdown begins

And the mischief is made known.

You will know what it is all about.

At least the Lads do not steal children for a snack,

Like their mother who parents love to use,

On the naughty children when they are out of line.

The fear is projected at such a young age,

It stays with them for the rest of their life.

Passing the stories on to child as a family tradition.

Next time you see a strange occurrence, remember

A Yule Lad is probably watching from their hiding place.

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