Eight Teachings From “Momo And The Lord Of Time” For Teenagers

Momo and the Lord of Time is a wonderful novel written by Michael Ende dedicated to children. In it, he lives up to his great imagination and enormous pedagogical capacity. For this reason, the teachings that the book brings are of great value.

What turns out to be very appealing to readers, no matter what generation they belong to, is that the teachings are conveyed in a creative, interesting and entertaining way through the story of a little girl named Momo.

The book could very well be classified as a work that invites everyone to reflect. Furthermore, it can also be classified as a text with a scathing critique of society.

The novel is basically about a small girl who suddenly has to face strange men. They are dressed in gray clothes and wear hats and wallets. Its mission is to convince people to invest their time in a kind of time bank.

time is life

Momo and the Lord of Time makes a strong criticism of how we waste the 

our time

. In contemporary societies, time has become a good to be bought and sold. Time has become a more mercantile element.

This book exposes how time can become a more marketable element and why it is necessary not to let money determine how we use it.

In other words, the book urges people to go further and spend time on what makes us whole and brings us immaterial benefits.

Knowing how to listen, one of the teachings of Momo and the Lord of Time

Momo’s teachings are divided into examples. In the case of the importance of knowing how to listen, the story presents a character who really knows how to listen, as he assists people, without interrupting them, and allows his interlocutors to express themselves freely.

A good listener is in no hurry and seeks, above all, to offer their support through the 

listening

. In a world where everyone wants to talk but few want to listen, Momo is a great example.

Solidarity is an essential value

Momo is a girl who lives in a community with scarce resources. Therefore, everyone helps each other and shares what they have with others.

Momo herself is the first beneficiary of this help: she has no home and the community provides her with a home. She has no goods and the others intervene so she can acquire them. She, in turn, becomes the light that guides others.

Creativity and imagination

One of Momo’s most interesting teachings is that of

imagination value

. With it and creativity, the banal can become something special. You don’t need stuff to feel good and have fun. What makes the difference is the ability to imagine.

It is a lesson that many children and young people today should learn.

These days, unfortunately, many people think that the fun is in the material, not the experiences. Owning an object is believed to guarantee fun. Momo demonstrates that this is not the case.

Utilitarianism is not the best option

Many of Momo’s teachings are aimed at rescuing the most genuine of human beings. Much of this lies outside the circuits of what is “the useful”.

Not everything in life should be done with the aim of profiting or for utility, there are gratuitous acts like imagining and laughing. Not everything has to be focused on monetary benefit.

Satisfaction is not in consumption

The entire gear of current society is focused on making it possible

the consumption

. The idea spread that the greatest satisfaction is found in buying and having the money for it.

Therefore, interest in activities that do not revolve around this logic was lost. However, Momo demonstrates that this is indeed a path towards unhappiness.

happiness is in the little things

Every day is full of small details that often go unnoticed. That’s because people focus only on what they call “major issues”.

Finally, nothing satisfies them. A dynamic is built in which more and more are needed every time, at the same time that the ability to see the magic of small things is lost and that is where happiness lies.

the lie causes harm

Several times, Momo refers to the damage they cause

the lies

. He says in the novel that “in his opinion”, all the misfortunes in the world were born from the many lies, the ones told on purpose, but also the involuntary ones, motivated by haste or by uncertainty. It teaches that the most negative effect of lying is the destruction of trust.