24 Days of Martin – Day 16: Mistletoe

Underneath the Christmas tree, a fierce battle was raging.  Red Nutcrackers battled Green Nutcrackers in a fight for the Christmas Star.  War music* blared out of the nearby speakers as Martin moved his troops around in a tense battle under the ornaments.  The end was in sight; the Red Nutcrackers had engaged in a long and bloody battle, breaking down all of the Green Nutcrackers but two; and these two were holding on tightly to their positions.  Hidden behind wrapped gifts, the Green Nutcrackers were sniping the Red Nutcrackers.  While the Red Nutcrackers still had plenty of troops left, their wounded and casualty count was low, and returning home victorious with as many soldiers as possible was their ultimate goal.

Suddenly, the war music changed. “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus” started playing.  All battles abruptly stopped.  Martin looked around, pulled out of his battle by the sounds of light and airy strings and Andy Williams singing.  This is not what his battle needed!  His battle required cellos and drums, and an electric guitar!  Martin’s stomach let out a gurgle and grumble, pulling him out of his battle fugue and back to reality.  He stood up and headed into the kitchen to find a snack.

Mom came into the kitchen, humming along with Andy Williams, and found Martin with his head stuck in the refrigerator.  He was mumbling about snipers and death to the evil green empire.  “Everything okay, Martin?”, Mom asked curiously.

“Sort of,” sighed Martin.  “I was in the middle of a great battle between the Red and Green Empires. All of a sudden, the war music changed, and “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus” started playing and ruined the battle.  Then my tummy growled, so I came in here for a snack.”   Martin walked over to the table and sat down with a slice of fruitcake left over from last night’s dessert.  

“ ‘I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus’ is one of my top ten favorite Christmas carols.”, smiled Mom.  

“Who cares if someone saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus?” Martin argued.  “Everyone should know it’s their Dad.  I mean, Santa is busy, and he needs his helpers to get all those gifts out.  Plus, the song doesn’t even say it’s Christmas Eve, so it’s probably just a Christmas Party and the Dad dressed up.”

“WOW!” laughed Mom.  “Using logic to describe a Christmas carol wasn’t something I thought I would encounter today.  Although you are right, it could just be Dad dressed up for a Christmas Party.”

“How come it’s mistletoe and not another plant?  Roses are red and green; so are geraniums and hibiscus.  Could it be any plant or does it have to be mistletoe?” Martin wondered. 

 “Do you remember Baldur, the Norse God of light?”, Mom asked.

“Yes,” replied Martin.  “The Vikings thought evergreen plants were Baldur’s favorite plant.”  Martin furrowed his brow and thought for a moment.  “Wait a minute.  Aren’t the Norse Gods also Gods in Germany?” Martin groaned and put his head down on the table.

Mom poured herself an iced tea and sat with Martin at the table.  “The Norse Gods and Germanic Gods were actually the same.  Vikings, Scandinavians, and early Germans all shared the myths of Odin and Thor.”

“Still,” Martin grumbled. “It’s always Germany. Or a place that used to be a part of Germany.”

“True,” Mom smiled.  “But let’s focus on Baldur and the mistletoe.” 

“Okay,” sulked Martin, drawing out the word so it sounded like ‘oooookaaaaaay’.

“Baldur used to have nightmares about his death.  To help make the nightmares go away, Baldur’s mom, Frigg, asked every object on earth to swear an oath that they would never harm Baldur.  They all agreed.  Frigg forgot one important plant: mistletoe.  Because it grows on trees and not on earth, mistletoe didn’t swear the oath.  Do you remember Loki?”

Martin frowned, “Loki from the Marvel Comics?”

Mom laughed, “Yes, and no.  Yes, they both come from the same source: Norse Mythology.  No, in that the Marvel Loki is not adopted by Odin and is not the younger brother of Thor.  Norse mythology states that Loki is the blood-brother of Odin after they swore a sacred blood-sharing oath to one another. The Marvel Loki wants the throne and seeks validation.  However, in Norse Mythology, Loki isn’t really a villain; he’s more of a catalyst who causes problems on purpose and then fixes the problems to look good in the eyes of the Gods.  His worst plan causes the death of Baldur.”

Leaning forward and brushing fruitcake crumbs off his face and onto his plate, “This does not sound good for Loki.”  Martin remarked.

“Not at all,” continued Mom.  Loki made an arrow using mistletoe.  Then he tricked Baldur’s blind brother, Hod, to shoot the arrow at Baldur.  Hod, knowing his brother is protected by an oath from everything on earth, shot Baldur with the arrow, accidentally killing him.  Baldur’s mother was overcome with grief and sorrow and cried over the mistletoe.  Her tears fell onto the mistletoe and turned into white berries, which we see today.  In some versions of the story, Frigg takes the mistletoe with the white berries and lays them on Baldur, who is then resurrected. When this happened, his mother, Frigg, declared mistletoe to be the symbol of love, peace, and friendship, and she promised a kiss and protection forever to anyone passing beneath it.  

Mistletoe is still seen as a symbol of peace and reconciliation today.  While originally hung in kitchens, mistletoe is placed in many locations today.  Wreaths are made with evergreen boughs and have mistletoe placed in the center.  These “Kissing Boughs” are hung on windows and doors and in the center of entryways to greet guests, which often include a hug and a kiss.”

One final fun fact I think you will enjoy: Mistletoe is considered a parasitic plant as it pulls its water from the tree it grows on, eventually killing the tree.  Some people call mistletoe the “vampiric plant”.  Additionally, the berries are extremely poisonous to humans and pets, though they don’t seem to affect birds.”

“Mistletoe does not sound like a plant I want to add to my garden.”, remarked Martin.  “I wouldn’t want to offend any Norse gods.  I also don’t want any poisonous plants in my garden areas.” 

“Probably a good idea.”, agreed Mom as she finished her tea.  “Do you know we have mistletoe hanging in the center of our front door?  Dad hung it there last week.”

“Ugh – does that mean you two are going to be kissing more than ever?” snorted Martin as he rolled he eyes.

“And more kisses for you as you leave for school each day!”, grinned Mom.

“I think I’ll take the kitchen door out to school for the next couple of weeks.”, laughed Martin as he headed back into the living room.  He had ideas about Nutcrackers and snipers and mistletoe-laced bullets he wanted to test out.

*War music is “Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24” by Trans-Siberian Orchestra and can be heard on YouTube here: https://bit.ly/4aVVbCV