Moomin messages have transformed my life and my relationship in sweet and significant ways. How so? Recently a friend introduced us to the writings of Tove Jannson, a Swedish speaking Finnish novelist, whose children’s books about Moominland, and its characters are treasured far and wide, but were unknown to me until a few months ago.
Several of the Moomin messages have literally created magical changes, bringing lightness, laughter, and a new perspective to some dull, or even crunchy situations. Too-Ticky, a positive and practical creature who features in some of the stories, is the source of several of the magical messages. Mike and I have been reading the stories aloud to each other, and when we came across Too Ticky saying to Moomintroll, at a juncture which seemed anything but pleasant, “You’ll have to think the whole matter’s fun, I suppose,” we laughed out loud.
More magical still is how saying Too-Ticky’s message to each other suddenly changes the 
mood and tone, the task and the trouble involved when, for example, one of us spills or breaks something, misplaces our keys, makes a grumpy face…to name just a few of the situations where the Moomin Message creates magic 🙂
Too-Ticky also says, “Such things happen.” So simple, so wise, so Buddhist, such a calming and useful thing to remember. How often these days, personally, and on a bigger scale, can this be an appropriate and helpful response, inviting a deep breath and a step back, acceptance of what we cannot control.
Sometimes too, it really loosens things up to say, “Shut up, please,” as Moomintroll did when Too-Ticky pointed something out to him that he wasn’t excited to hear. Especially useful when someone says, “You’ll have to think the whole matter’s fun, I suppose”! 🙂
A fourth one that has brought smiles to Mike and me, when we are realizing yet again, how we are on the same planet, but we really live in different worlds, is summed up by Moomintroll, when he closed his eyes and thought: “How very different people are.” What is more, Moomintroll didn’t seem upset, annoyed, or to take it personally. Rather, he exhibited what seemed to be interest and acceptance. Moominland Magic. Transformative, evocative, light, radical. The Moomin messages create a real shift in attention! Which brings me to a W. H. Auden quote I’d like to leave you with, pointing to what a gift the Moomin messages continue to be for me:
