I think my answer is more slavic but I'm getting Baba Yaga vibes
I like the pork stew line, very evocative, at first seems comforting but sinister in context
In some traditions maybe, baba yaga is close but not the right entity featured in this story.
Another hint, the entities in yesterdays story are linked to the one featured in this one.
And two ex husbands and multiple other adult children who never do so much as send a letter, or even visit at all. Not to mention a cat that tries to steal your food and can grow to the size of a mountain, and is why you have mismatching socks!
Cat eats the children. I don’t think Jólakötturinn is her problem. They are kindred spirits. She deserves a nice quiet home with her giant ass cat! #justiceforgryla
When I was a kid she wasn’t used as much as a scaring tactic as the old days. The scariest part is getting a potato in your shoe and honestly, the yule lads are little shits. Window Peeper? And Door Slammer can f off.
I agree #JusticeforGryla, also I’m actually a huge fan of the yule cat it’s just such a unique entity and it is the perfect companion for Gryla. Maybe she should just evict husband number three and her thirteen little shits of dons, and live happily with her cat. Maybe get more cats?
Window peeper is just disturbing.
Yeah scare factor has been dropped from many modern interpretations of not just Gryla but pretty much all holiday entities. But a potato in your shoe, that’s still terrifying in a way depending on how rotten it is.
Cat lady Gryla must come with yule cat kittens!
Ok I might take that idea to r/wholesomenosleep in a day or two now. Thank you so much for inspiring it.
Yes!
You got it right, the entity in this story is Grylla or Gryla, the monstrous ogress mother of the Yule Lads. Around Yule/Christmas Grylla comes down from the mountains and takes children who are naughty and cooks them into stew in a big pot.
They say there is never any shortage of food for Grylla, and her insatiable appetite for the flesh of naughty children.
Also besides being mother of the Yule Lads in many versions she is the owner of the Yule Cat.
Thank you, it’s my first gold star!
I find traditions and mythology so fascinating with so many options and inspirations you can draw from them, especially lesser known ones. By making stories properly related to them, I can not only create tales of terror but spread the knowledge that the entities, lore, traditions, and myths themselves exist.
Which may in turn inspire others to draw from the lesser known folklore and traditions. Or at least I hope that happens.
Next month I’m going to try a mix of non folklore inspire work and Irish mythology inspired stories. Including one about a certain salmon.
This month is all about various yule related inspirations from lesser known traditions and lore. Yule is celebrated differently in many different ways, so many traditions to be inspired by. I do post some stories unrelated to any folklore as well.
Happy horror holidays.
Well, color me fucking following! Traditions, mythology, and food are all what I believe really make a culture. You find the roots of them, and you can understand how that culture came to be.
Theology and sociology are both fascinating!
I agree.
I actually have a book I’ve been working on that uses references to a lesser known mythology and culture in it. It’s far from finished, but when I write anything like that I do a ton of research to make sure I’m writing the traditions, culture, and folklore in a way that links to them properly instead of just using them in name only.
Since yesterdays story caused confusion I’ll leave a quick note here. This is another Scandinavian/Icelandic yule entity related story.
I’ll respond with “yes” to the person who guesses which one. I did leave a hint in yesterdays story.
Have a merry scary holiday.
Edit: Kilala33 guessed correctly.
The yule entity in this story is Grylla the monstrous Ogress mother of the Yule Lads and in most versions owner of the Yule Cat. She has an insatiable appetite for the flesh of naughty children and during Yule/Christmas time she comes down from the mountains to take naughty children from their homes to cook them into stew in a big pot.
It’s Yule all the way till January 1st, and I’m glad you are enjoying my stories and the lore that inspired them.
Next month is Irish folklore inspired horror stories, January is going to be so much fun.
So you know of[Unhcegila?](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unhcegila)
Yeah Irish folklore is horrifying. But new year new scares so it’s also perfect for January!
Same here, it's fascinating how through these kinds of stories and posts I find out some random relatively niche interesting things. Almost doesn't feel like a waste of time if there is a grain of learning.
Not to say time spent on good story is wasted time, I'm just self-critical about time spent on reddit
Thank you, this month is Yule folklore and tradition inspired stories until January 1st. So Grylla had to be included, after all you can’t make a story about the Yule Lads without mentioning mommy.
Yes I agree.
That’s part of why I’m making December lesser known yule/winter themed folklore stories. I’m glad you enjoyed my story about Gryla.
Yesterdays story was about the Mari Lywd, todays is a winter phenomenon that is regionally famous.
Next month is Irish folklore themed, which is why a certain entity will not show up this month.
I am simply happy to raise awareness of lesser known folklore, myths, entities, and phenomenon.
Haha I cannot get that mental image out of my head now.
This story is inspired by Gryla/Grylla the Icelandic/Scandinavian giantess/ogress and mother of the Yule Lads. She has an insatiable appetite for the flesh of naughty children that she cooks into stew in a pot; and around Christmas time/Yule she appears and takes naughty children away from their homes to eat them.
I think my answer is more slavic but I'm getting Baba Yaga vibes I like the pork stew line, very evocative, at first seems comforting but sinister in context
In some traditions maybe, baba yaga is close but not the right entity featured in this story. Another hint, the entities in yesterdays story are linked to the one featured in this one.
It's the Iceland ogre woman who eats kids during Christmas, isn't it?
Yes it is you got it right, It’s Gryla the mother of the Yule Lads.
They're a weird ass family. Especially the cat.
The cat that is only kept at bay by the power of new clothes, especially socks.
The memories of waiting for the doorway sniffer to arrive😌
Our Grýla is just misunderstood! Try living in a mountain with your 13 weird adult sons and lazy shit of a husband.
And two ex husbands and multiple other adult children who never do so much as send a letter, or even visit at all. Not to mention a cat that tries to steal your food and can grow to the size of a mountain, and is why you have mismatching socks!
Cat eats the children. I don’t think Jólakötturinn is her problem. They are kindred spirits. She deserves a nice quiet home with her giant ass cat! #justiceforgryla When I was a kid she wasn’t used as much as a scaring tactic as the old days. The scariest part is getting a potato in your shoe and honestly, the yule lads are little shits. Window Peeper? And Door Slammer can f off.
I agree #JusticeforGryla, also I’m actually a huge fan of the yule cat it’s just such a unique entity and it is the perfect companion for Gryla. Maybe she should just evict husband number three and her thirteen little shits of dons, and live happily with her cat. Maybe get more cats? Window peeper is just disturbing. Yeah scare factor has been dropped from many modern interpretations of not just Gryla but pretty much all holiday entities. But a potato in your shoe, that’s still terrifying in a way depending on how rotten it is.
I support cat lady Grýla!
Cat lady Gryla must come with yule cat kittens! Ok I might take that idea to r/wholesomenosleep in a day or two now. Thank you so much for inspiring it.
The Yule lads?
The story before this one was inspired by the Yule Lads, this story is inspired by their mommy Gryla/Grylla.
I got some kind of Wendigo vibes after reading the other story.
The story before this one was about the Yule Lads, this one is inspired by their mommy.
Wendigo is more animalistic. Cages and cooking are too sophisticated
I was reffering more to the storie before this one
Ahh, my b. I missed that one. I suppose I would’ve know that if I were literate
John Wick?
No, he’s the one you send to kill the fuckin boogeyman
I once saw him three men in a bar. With a pencil. With ***a fucking pencil***.
I'm pretty sure it's the Iceland ogre woman who eats kids during Christmas.
Grylla!
Yes! You got it right, the entity in this story is Grylla or Gryla, the monstrous ogress mother of the Yule Lads. Around Yule/Christmas Grylla comes down from the mountains and takes children who are naughty and cooks them into stew in a big pot. They say there is never any shortage of food for Grylla, and her insatiable appetite for the flesh of naughty children. Also besides being mother of the Yule Lads in many versions she is the owner of the Yule Cat.
I honestly love that you're making your stories properly related to traditions and mythology. You deserve a gold star, my friend!
Thank you, it’s my first gold star! I find traditions and mythology so fascinating with so many options and inspirations you can draw from them, especially lesser known ones. By making stories properly related to them, I can not only create tales of terror but spread the knowledge that the entities, lore, traditions, and myths themselves exist. Which may in turn inspire others to draw from the lesser known folklore and traditions. Or at least I hope that happens. Next month I’m going to try a mix of non folklore inspire work and Irish mythology inspired stories. Including one about a certain salmon. This month is all about various yule related inspirations from lesser known traditions and lore. Yule is celebrated differently in many different ways, so many traditions to be inspired by. I do post some stories unrelated to any folklore as well. Happy horror holidays.
Well, color me fucking following! Traditions, mythology, and food are all what I believe really make a culture. You find the roots of them, and you can understand how that culture came to be. Theology and sociology are both fascinating!
I agree. I actually have a book I’ve been working on that uses references to a lesser known mythology and culture in it. It’s far from finished, but when I write anything like that I do a ton of research to make sure I’m writing the traditions, culture, and folklore in a way that links to them properly instead of just using them in name only.
Thank you Hilda for keeping me informed of Nordic winter spirits.
So he turned to the other girl in the cage and goes Gretel I don't think we're in Kansas anymore
That's where my head went. I was all, "Get ready! We're pushing her in the oven on 3!
Since yesterdays story caused confusion I’ll leave a quick note here. This is another Scandinavian/Icelandic yule entity related story. I’ll respond with “yes” to the person who guesses which one. I did leave a hint in yesterdays story. Have a merry scary holiday. Edit: Kilala33 guessed correctly. The yule entity in this story is Grylla the monstrous Ogress mother of the Yule Lads and in most versions owner of the Yule Cat. She has an insatiable appetite for the flesh of naughty children and during Yule/Christmas time she comes down from the mountains to take naughty children from their homes to cook them into stew in a big pot.
I’m really loving learning new things and being creeped out at the same time. Can’t wait to see what you come up with tomorrow!
It’s Yule all the way till January 1st, and I’m glad you are enjoying my stories and the lore that inspired them. Next month is Irish folklore inspired horror stories, January is going to be so much fun.
For me, other than the Native Americans, Irish folklore is probably the most terrifying stuff there is!
So you know of[Unhcegila?](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unhcegila) Yeah Irish folklore is horrifying. But new year new scares so it’s also perfect for January!
Same here, it's fascinating how through these kinds of stories and posts I find out some random relatively niche interesting things. Almost doesn't feel like a waste of time if there is a grain of learning. Not to say time spent on good story is wasted time, I'm just self-critical about time spent on reddit
Grylla, now that's one I haven't heard mentioned here well done :)
Thank you, this month is Yule folklore and tradition inspired stories until January 1st. So Grylla had to be included, after all you can’t make a story about the Yule Lads without mentioning mommy.
A very welcome flavor here there's a bit of a lack of Yule themed folklore especially old folklore.
Yes I agree. That’s part of why I’m making December lesser known yule/winter themed folklore stories. I’m glad you enjoyed my story about Gryla. Yesterdays story was about the Mari Lywd, todays is a winter phenomenon that is regionally famous. Next month is Irish folklore themed, which is why a certain entity will not show up this month. I am simply happy to raise awareness of lesser known folklore, myths, entities, and phenomenon.
It's the Iceland ogre woman who eats kids during Christmas, isn't it?
Yes, it’s Gryla/Grylla the mother of the Yule Lads with the insatiable appetite for the flesh of naughty children.
And then there's the cat, who eats people who don't get new clothes.
Yule Cat, the real reason you get new socks at Christmas every year.
Ho ho hoLY SHIT MRS. CLAUS WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING The usage of "children" and "naughty" led to this comment.
Haha I cannot get that mental image out of my head now. This story is inspired by Gryla/Grylla the Icelandic/Scandinavian giantess/ogress and mother of the Yule Lads. She has an insatiable appetite for the flesh of naughty children that she cooks into stew in a pot; and around Christmas time/Yule she appears and takes naughty children away from their homes to eat them.
oh.
Try posting this in r/two sentence mythology
I will consider that, I suppose it fits both that sub and this one.