Day 7 of Yule: Grýla and the Yule Lads
This post is part 7 of my 12 Days of Yule series, inspired by the seasonal framework at Pagan Grimoire. Today turns toward Icelandic folklore, and toward the winter stories that are less polished and more honest.
Not every seasonal figure arrives with warmth. Some arrive with weight. Day 7 introduces Grýla and the Yule Lads, figures shaped by scarcity, survival, and the realities of long winters.
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| Francisco Goya, Viejos comiendo sopa (Two Old Men Eating Soup), c. 1819–1823. |
Grýla as Winter Memory
Grýla is often described as frightening, but fear is not her only function. She belongs to a time when winter exposed vulnerability directly. Hunger was visible. Preparation mattered. Community behavior had consequences.
Seen this way, Grýla becomes less a monster and more a memory. She represents the edge of survival, the part of winter that could not be softened without losing truth.
The Yule Lads and Everyday Friction
The Yule Lads arrive one at a time, and stay for over a week. Each is associated with a specific habit. None of them are catastrophic. They are inconvenient, irritating, and familiar.
There is something quietly compassionate in this storytelling. The flaws are recognizable. They are exaggerated, not erased. Winter, it seems, was never about perfection. It was about getting through.
Why This Image Fits
Goya's Viejos comiendo sopa holds the same tension as these stories. The figures are not idealized. The scene is not sentimental. Yet there is care in the act of eating, in the shared moment.
The painting does not explain itself. It simply presents what is. That restraint feels aligned with Day 7. Winter sustains life quietly, without decoration.
Living With What Is Not Polished
Day 7 makes room for the parts of the season that feel rough or unresolved. Inclusion does not mean smoothing every edge. It means allowing honesty to exist alongside warmth.
There is nourishment here, even in austerity.
Which winter stories stay with you because they feel true rather than comforting? For me, it's The Little Match Girl by Andersen.
Day 8 of the 12 Days of Yule: To be created.
If you missed yesterday, you can read Day 6: Odin’s Day and the Wild Hunt.
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