Completing a Yule Oath

One of the best, and sometimes most challenging, ways to build your luck is through keeping your oaths. The Heathen view of luck is much more complex than the way that we use the word in our modern English and is a little more than I want to go into at this moment (possible future article).

Last year my hubby and I spent the Yule holiday with some very good folk up in North Carolina. We had recently purchased our home and while it was new to us, it was originally built in 1947. The gentleman we bought the house from was a contractor who had fixed it up for himself. He was not, however, into landscaping. The yard was in terrible condition, especially the out-of-control azaleas and the scrub brush growing along the fence line. The previous occupants had been driving through the front and side yards, rather than using the driveway around the back. The yard was simply a mess, so for my Yule oath I swore to get the yard in good shape. My hubby made an oath to assist me. Ye gods, we really didn’t realize what we were getting ourselves into!

Here’s the thing about an oath, it shapes you and your life for good or ill. To build your luck, you must do your utmost to keep your oaths. Failure to do so can compromise your luck and bring bad things your way, especially if it is spoken over a horn. The words and wyrd mix in the “well” that is the horn and is heard by our gods and ancestors, so I take oathing very seriously. My hubby and I spent nearly every weekend working really hard in the yard to try to make the land productive and clear off the scrub. What I didn’t realize at the time, however, is that this will be a never ending project. That’s ok. I feel that we fulfilled our obligation and that the land wights and ancestors would be proud of what we have accomplished.

Step 1: Ripping out overgrown azaleas from front yard
Step 1: Ripping out overgrown azaleas from front yard

Step 2: Digging up buried bricks from old driveway and walkway in front yard.
Step 2: Digging up buried bricks from old driveway and walkway in front yard.

Step 3: Tilling up entire front and side yard (not pictured, and I’m kicking myself for not taking pictures after that experience!).
Prior occupants drove through yard.
Prior occupants drove through yard.

Step 4: Garden beds planted where they used to drive through yard.
Garden beds planted where they used to drive through yard.

Step 6: Clear away scrub brush from fence line.
Step 6: Clear away scrub brush from fence line.

Cleared fence line.
Cleared fence line.

Perhaps you can’t see the differences, but believe me when I say they are huge. Most of the pics were taken today or a year ago (except the garden), so the grass was dead. Not too much I can do about that, but we ripped out a huge amount of old, humongous azaleas (which sent both of us to the chiropractor on many occasions), tilled the yard, ground stumps, buried over 100 feet of soaker hoses for the garden, did a LOT of soil amending since all we have is sand, and continuously rake pine needles. I spend many hours a week raking up pine needles just so the grass that will grow in the sand will get some sunlight.

Yes, I think the hubby and I have done more than enough to complete our oath. Gods know we’ve worked and spent enough! But the gods also know that this is something we will be continually working on, since pine needles fall all year and scrub brush and azaleas continue to come back. I hope that our hard work will not only increase our luck, but also our property value.

Here are some pics of the front yard I took today.
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