"Matti did not come to Ukko's funeral, although his parents sent a message about it. He could not cope with facing the loss in the form of a coffin, a funeral, the grief of the parents, the support of society for the bereaved. And he did not dare to risk meeting his own parents, his own family. He would stand there as a representative of sin from the south, the sin that had killed his best friend. They would blame him. They would be disgusted at the sight of him. And not for a single moment would they acknowledge his presence."

"Northland" is a story about Matti from Kärsämäki in North Ostrobothnia, Finland. An isolated place with a single bus stop on the route between Oulu and Helsinki and a pit stop for drivers who need to refuel on the way to or from their holiday in Lapland. Here, a particularly conservative Christian denomination, Laestadianism, has been strong since the mid-1800s, and Matti was born into one of its congregations.

But the world is changing, and so are people. Maybe.

"Northland" is based on inspiration from local sources from Kärsämäki, the area's nature, history and folklore and of course from Kalevala, Finland's national epic.

"Northland" is the 6th independent story in the series Modern Nordic Folk Tales. Storytelling for adults.