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We have boxes and boxes of ornaments, hundreds perhaps, so many we can't fit them all on our towering tree.  Many were gifts; others were collected from my travels across the country and internationally.  We have beautiful decorations from New Orleans to Mexico to Iceland and beyond; others celebrate my Norwegian and Dutch heritage.  Our tree also holds ornaments made with unique Alaska materials: beaded seal skin, birch bark, and shells.  Many ornaments have been in the family for decades, including those hand-made by my son - now 26 years old.   But I have several even older than that, pre-dating my childhood.  And one of those is the most special.  
Our most memorable ornament is a ceramic mailbox with green holly and red berries featuring a tiny, sweet mouse sleeping peacefully inside.  
My Aunt Clara, my dad's oldest sister, sent it to my father when I was a young child.  He laboredas a letter carrier in our small, rural town in Minnesota.  Every day, he would hoist the heavy leather bag on his back and deliver mail to homes up and down steep hills.  In those days, nothing was on line.  The mail contained of a great deal of correspondence and bills and weekly and monthly magazines, all waiting to be delivered to the mailboxes placed on the homes, adding to his steps.  In the summer, it was hot.  In the winter, it was bitterly cold with wind and drifting snow.  In the weeks leading up to Christmas, each day was harder than the one before.  Christmas cards and small packages added to his load, and the hours of work grew longer.  He always got home late on Christmas Eve and was so tired he slept through Christmas, exhausted.  He perked up, though, when it was time to eat dinner!  
This little mouse curled in the mailbox reminds me of my childhood.  Like many families, we benefited from his and other lettercarriers' diligence.  We delighted in recieving holiday cards.  We welcomed the small packages from relatives across the miles.  And it all gave me an appreciation for the workers providing basic services, whether it's delivering mail or growing food.  Whatever it is, hopefully we can rest peacefully when our work is done.   And, especially, have time to enjoy family.  
Cindy Spanyers
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