Podcast Summary:
Listen To Sleep: Quiet Bedtime Stories & Meditations
Host: Erik Ireland
Episode: The Journey to Stillness - A Dreamy Norse Myth for the Turning Year
Date: December 28, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode, Erik Ireland reads "The Journey to Stillness," an original bedtime story inspired by Norse mythology. It explores the tale of Vidar, a young god who doubts himself for being quieter and less demonstrative than his brothers, Thor and Balder. Through a meditative journey with his father Odin, Vidar gradually comes to understand the value in his own stillness and presence. The story is a soothing invitation to self-acceptance, perfect for the reflective time between Christmas and New Year.

Key Discussion Points & Story Themes

1. Setting the Scene & Story Introduction

(04:08 – 06:24)

• Erik describes the wintry, peaceful environment of his mountain cabin and sets a gentle, restful atmosphere for listeners.
• Introduces the protagonist Vidar, a quiet god overshadowed by his more exuberant brothers, Thor (thunderous, strong) and Balder (radiant, beloved).

2. Vidar’s Struggle with Self-Acceptance

(06:25 – 12:10)

• Vidar feels incomplete compared to his brothers and resolves to become “more”—louder, brighter, more like them.
• He tries and fails to imitate their traits, with his attempts feeling “forced, brittle, breaking against the cold air like thin ice.”
  • Notable quote:
    • Odin: “What do you think quiet does?” (09:45)
    • Vidar: “Nothing. That’s the point. It’s just absence.”
    • Odin (soft smile): “Is it?”

3. The Wandering Journey with Odin

(12:11 – 25:30)

• Odin invites Vidar on a long, meditative walk through wintery Midgard.
• Vidar attempts to act like his brothers:
  • Comforts a crying child as Balder would, only to feel artificial and distant.
  • Tells stories and laughs loudly at a feast like Thor, but feels hollow and unseen.
• Odin watches quietly, occasionally asking gentle, reflective questions:
  • “How did that feel? What did you notice? Were you there when you were doing that?” (15:40)

4. Settling Into Stillness

(25:31 – 37:05)

• In a forest camp, Vidar ceases his attempts to change and simply observes: firelight on snow, different types of silence, deer moving through the woods.
• He discovers the subtle richness and presence that exist in quiet and stillness.
  • Notable quote:
    • “He began to notice things…the way the firelight moved across the snow, orange and gold and shadow always shifting…The way the forest had different kinds of silence.” (30:10)
• Odin uses metaphors of nature to illustrate the importance of stillness:
  • “The mountains are still…are they small?”
  • “What does the forest need from silence?” (32:05)

5. Learning from Quiet Craft & Presence

(37:06 – 44:10)

• Passing through a village, Vidar quietly joins an old woman watching the sky, sharing a sacred, silent presence.
• At a forge, Vidar observes a blacksmith’s silent focus: “Four hinges. Hours of work. They would hold. A door, probably a barn door, and no one would ever think about them. They would just work quietly, doing what hinges do.” (42:00)

6. Realization and Reconciliation

(44:11 – 48:00)

• At the gate to Asgard, Odin asks if Vidar felt “less than your brothers” when he was simply present by the fire in the forest.
• Vidar answers truthfully:
  • “No. I was just myself.”
  • “And was that enough?”
  • “Yes. It was enough.” (45:50)
• Odin counsels:
  • “The world will ask you many times to be something other than what you are…But the mountains don’t become valleys. The silence doesn’t apologize for not being thunder…The world needs them exactly as they are. Just as it needs you.” (46:15)

7. Returning Home & Integration

(48:01 – 53:00)

• Vidar returns to Asgard, not trying to hide or become part of the noise, but recognizing his place at the edge of the firelight.
• He notices the value of quiet between moments of celebration and noise—the rest between notes that gives music its shape.
  • “The quiet made room for the loud. The stillness gave the movement somewhere to land.” (50:15)
• Balder observes that Vidar seems “quieter somehow, but more present.”
• Vidar replies:
  • “I’m exactly the same. I just stopped trying not to be.” (52:25)

8. Closing Reflection and Meditation

(53:01 – 55:50)

• Erik’s story closes by extending the lesson outward: you are already enough just as you are; your way of being is needed.
  • “You do not have to become something other than what you are…The world needs your particular way of being, your particular stillness, your particular presence.” (54:15)
• Invites listeners to rest, holding onto this understanding.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Odin: “What does the forest need from silence?” (32:05)
• Odin: “Stillness isn’t absence, Vidar. It’s presence without announcement, strength without display. Being without needing to prove your being.” (41:35)
• Odin: “The world will ask you many times to be something other than what you are…But the mountains don’t become valleys. The silence doesn’t apologize for not being thunder. They just are what they are. And the world needs them exactly as they are. Just as it needs you.” (46:15)
• Vidar: “I’m exactly the same. I just stopped trying not to be.” (52:25)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Story Introduction & Vidar’s Struggle: 04:08 – 12:10
• Journey & Learning Attempts: 12:11 – 25:30
• Settling Into Stillness: 25:31 – 37:05
• Village Encounters & Blacksmith: 37:06 – 44:10
• Realization & Conversation with Odin: 44:11 – 48:00
• Reintegration in Asgard: 48:01 – 53:00
• Closing Reflection: 53:01 – 55:50

Tone and Language

Erik Ireland uses gentle, poetic language, rich in imagery and natural metaphors. The story is told with patience, warmth, and an encouraging, non-judgmental tone—like a wise, loving grandparent helping a child make peace with their nature.

Summary Takeaway

This episode delivers a message that your quiet, your stillness, your particular way of presence is valuable and needed, especially in times of transition and reflection. Through Vidar’s journey, listeners are reminded that self-acceptance and peaceful presence are just as essential as thunder and light in the world’s symphony.

“You are already what you need to be. You were always enough. Rest well, friend.” (55:20)