In “Tears of the Gods” by John Lindow; A Note on the Death of Baldr in Scandinavian Mythology,” an article published by the University of Illinois Press in 2002, explains the myth of Baldr and represents it in a way that illustrates the Scandinavian culture that created it. He analyzes the myth from a different perspective than other contemporary ideas and argues that the Baldr myth has deep roots in Viking Age culture reflecting many elements present in the Icelandic sagas and other written sources of this time. He connects the Saga Era vendetta to the myth of Baldr and argues that the myth is different from other interpretations which claim it to be a relationship with Christian myth. His article challenges the currency of universal crying for Baldr across the world and reveals many aspects of Viking Age culture and how their records relate to myth. Blood feud in medieval Iceland was a common means of settling disputes between families; however, it rarely achieved its goal. Feuds between families and tribes would last for generations, and in the end it was likely that neither side knew what they were fighting for. In the Myth of Baldr, after Baldr's death, Lindow notes that the gods seek revenge and a blood feud is initiated. Odin's son Váli must accomplish this task and he kills his own brother and murderer Höðr. Viking Age Icelanders might consider a blood feud to be over when other family members were dead, but Baldr's feud displays a different fate. Due to the family relations between the opposing gods, the feud can never be resolved. Thus, mythological contexts are needed to end the feud and reunite the brothers. Lindow explains that vengeance is also carried out on Loki, but... middle of paper ......dow cannot conclude why the mistletoe kills Baldr, other than that it "lies on the border between various categories conceptual” and makes a good weapon (p. 159). However, if we maintain the idea that Baldr is indeed the god of the mighty and the evergreen giver of life, then it is fitting that mistletoe would have the strength to kill him. Mistletoe is a type of parasitic plant that kills trees and although it may seem harmless, as it did to Frigg in the Death of Baldr myth (p. 156), it has the power to destroy anything something that ensured the sustainability of the Germanic people. Plus, mistletoe itself is an evergreen plant and can probably take us back to the beginning of the end. Baldr is killed by his brother who is in turn killed by another brother. So the evergreen kills the evergreen and takes away sustainability from people who, without it, risk extinction..