He saddles his stead
To head off into the night
On All-Hallows-Eve
Begins Odin’s wild ride
Odin leads the hunt
Followed by the lost
And despairing
The hunters of old
Who were damned in life and hereafter
Be wary through your travels
On the darks nights of winter
Til the start of a new spring
For the nights then belong
To Odin’s wild huntsmen
When you hear the winds rise
And thunder fills the skies
Or the roar of the hunters
And the howling of the dogs
You better find shelter
And burn the Yule log
It means the hunters are hunting
And they are close
Be warned now
While there’s still time
For if you are caught
By the berserkers of the night
Your soul will be theirs
And damn you to hunt with them
For all time

[Twyla DiGangi has been a solitary hedge witch following a Norse pantheon for over ten years. She is a certified herbalist with accreditation from Heart of Herbs and Susun Weeds ABC of Herbalism. She lives in the southern part of Alberta, Canada in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains with her family and two dogs. She has written articles for Suite 101 and Essential Herbal magazine.]