Stranger in a Strange Land – No. 7

A Link Between Kissing and Hunting

I’ve always fancied the look of mistletoe—its small pearlescent berries, its delicate rounded leaves. But I never thought much about where it grew, only that I could usually locate it at a local florist come Christmastime. I guess I presumed it to be a cousin of the holly bush.

But I was so wrong.

Am I the only one who didn’t know that mistletoe is a parasite? Grows high in the branches of majestic trees? Is hunted here in the South? Yes, hunted.

Folks actually seek out trees where the mistletoe has rooted and shoot at the evergreen to bring it down. Shooting mistletoe and taking it to market can be a lucrative pastime; it can also be a frustrating endeavor.

I noticed that the discovery of a new type of mistletoe in Mozambique made the news this week. And when looking for a photo I could post on Lull, I learned a bit of mistletoe history (it’s the floral emblem of Oklahoma and was used on gravesites when other flowers weren’t affordable or available).

Well, ain’t that somethin’? Now when you sneak a kiss under the mistletoe ball, you’ll know the lore and travails behind the Christmas tradition.

This is part of an ongoing series regarding my transition from the Land of Lincoln to the Bluegrass State. For a list of previous articles in the series, type Stranger in a Strange Land into Lull’s search function on the right.