The Tomten

It is a quiet midwinter night. The snow lies deep and soft over the farm, and the stars twinkle high above the rooftops. Up in the hayloft, a little tomten wakes in his red cap and grey woollen coat. He tiptoes carefully out into the snow in his little slippers. 'Everything is sleeping,' he whispers.

The little tomten walks into the warm barn. The horse stands dozing in his stall, and the tomten pats him softly on the nose. Beside him sleeps the cow with her long eyelashes, and the tomten smiles. Then he peeks into the hen-house, where the hens sit close together on their roost, dreaming tiny dreams.

The tomten stops at the cottage window and looks inside. There the children sleep in their beds, their cheeks soft as flour. The tomten smiles quietly and thinks gentle thoughts. He looks up at the stars and wonders where they come from, but it is a soft and warm wonder, like a story without words.