It is a story everybody knows. After a rude refusal by local innkeeper, Mary and Joseph bedded down in a barn in Bethlehem. The next day, Mary gave birth to a son, the son of God. Those are the Biblical origins of Christmas. But centuries before Jesus walked on the earth, early Europeans were celebrating light and birth in the darkest days of winter.

In the North country, this winter celebration was known as euo. Around December 1st, the winter solstice, fathers and sons would drag home the biggest log they could find and set it on fire. The euo log warmed, but it had also looked ahead. Each spark was said to represent a pig or a calf to be born in the spring. Also drag inside were evergreens, the one plants that could make it through a north winter, Evergreens prove that life persisted in this dark time.

There is a natural attraction to that which lives through the winter, when one is struggling to survive through the winrer. The evergreens is that part of nature that seems impervious to the coming of winter and the diminishing of the sun. And so it's an absolutely natural symbol, one which I think a react to almost wothout thinking about.

For as long as the euo log burned, about 12 days, feasting and reverie ring supreme. In fact, this was one of the few times that meat was abundant, since cattle had just been slaughtered for the long winter.

This is a necessity, they killed most of the cattle ,as the calf, keep them alive over the winter, was that they feed they want, in people fewer lives were breeding ,but there  is an opportunity for a great blowout, for a great feast, time to party.

The party raged inside, in the fines of winter's deadly howl.

There is a spooky feel about the northern inutile festivals; you may be alright there in the hall, as it appears in fires. But outside, there are demons, there are spirits.

In Germany, the pagan god odin lent his named  to this midwinter holiday. Early Germans were terrified for odin whose nocturnal flights decided who would proser or perish in the coming yeat. Later we'd  see another Christmans sky rider, Santa Claus. But for now, staying inside became the smartest choice at this frightening time of the year.