The goddesses are not mentioned a lot in the records, but there are occasional stories where one can find out a little about them.
Today, I thought it might be fun to share about the goddess Idunn, who is the goddess of youth or rejuvenation.
One of the great things mentioned in Norse mythology is the ability of certain beings to shapeshift. The most famous one, of course, is Loki, who in the stories shapeshifts includes a mare, fish, a hawk, and potentially an old woman.
One of my favorite stories is when Loki agrees to kidnap the goddess Idunn, who is the gardener who watches over the apples, and these apples help to keep the gods young.
Loki, away from Asgard and in the mountains, has gotten into trouble with one of the giants, who had been in the disguise of an eagle and demands a portion of the food Loki was cooking on an open fire. The eagle demands too much and Loki takes a branch to shoo the eagle away. The eagle snatched up the branch and Loki doesn't let go. Up high in the air, Loki is scared and begs the eagle to return him to safety. The eagle declares he will only do so if Loki brings him Idunn and her fruit.
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Idunn heads out of the gates of Asgard, and whoop! Snatched up by the giant, and taken away.
Well, the gods know something is wrong as they begin to age (so I'm guessing she was gone a little bit before they truly noticed). Since they can't get their apples, they turn to Loki, as she was last seen with them.
It doesn't take much for Loki to confess that Idunn has been