Office / Lab Tree

Do you have traditions in your Christmas celebration?  I imagine so - I know we do.  I thought I

would take a few posts in December to talk about particular traditions of mine and my families.  I'm doing this to keep in mind that traditions are a two-edged sword.  They can bring back memories - thoughts of family and friends - the joy of past celebrations.  They can also hinder us from change, so we need to be careful with them, and use them wisely.

First off, the tradition of my office Christmas tree.  (pictured in this post).

This tradition began when I was working in the endocrinology research lab with Mary Beth.  We put up a tree - a smaller one than this one - and decorated it with tiny ornaments, and a few lab supplies, I think (like a few pipet tips, maybe?).  We put it up each year, and then when Mary Beth moved to clinical research, I continued with the tree.  I moved the tree to our new lab in the new building, and then when I left research and came to the Foundation, the tree came with me.

It's not the same tree we first put up in the lab - that was over 25 years ago.  This one is bigger and somewhere along the line, I added lights.  (Lights are my favorite part of the tree).  Each year I add a few ornaments, and when I started working for the Church, some of the ornaments I added were words of faith, and nativities.  When I worked in the lab, there were people of many faiths, and I wanted my actions as a Christian to speak louder than the ornaments on a tree, so I kept the ornaments more secular - like Santa and the very appropriate mice.

This year when I put up the tree, as I hung up a small angel, I remembered that she had been on the original tree.  I thought about Mary Beth (Hi!) and our friendship.  As I hung up the little wooden nativity, I gave thanks for where I work now, and the opportunities that have come my way.  When I hung up the words joy, peace and hope, I remembered why I was putting up the tree.  And when I turned on the lights, I smiled, because that's my favorite part.