December may not be the postman’s favorite month. There are busy days with packages going both here and there. But it was even heavier in the pre-digital era. That time an important message from aunts, old neighbours, distant relatives or acquaintances was to be delivered. The message was mostly simple: Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! It is not certain that everyone on the card is looking forward to Christmas as much. On the way with gifts for young and old. Graut and pig reappear on many of the old cards. The snow was always deeper before. If you miss it, you can always buy yourself an old Christmas card to look at. When the floor was washed, the birdcage hung up and the Christmas cards sent; Then everything was ready for a happy Christmas. As recently as 2017, we sent 10 million Christmas cards. Now almost 70 percent are gone. In the last five years alone, millions of Christmas cards have “disappeared”. This year, Posten expects that only 3.3 million cards will be sent. – Letter volume in general has decreased since the turn of the millennium. E-mail has replaced A-mail, says press manager Kenneth Pettersen at Posten Norge. A heavy job Now the postman drives a car and often gets away with a shared mailbox stand. Before, the courier had to walk many kilometers on his route. With a bag over one’s shoulder to a mailbox. The snow was certainly deeper, the minus degrees more, the roads smoother and the snowblower stinging in the face. At the time, the postmen had to stay in shape until Christmas, for example by playing left-back at Rosenborg. – That mail bag weighed its kilos, yes. Especially at the start of the route. You noticed it when it was time for Christmas cards, says Trond Henriksen. But the Christmas cards he carried were long-awaited. Occasionally the postman was invited in for coffee, recalls the former Rosenborg player. – It was nice, but we were on pins and needles. We were in a hurry. Trond “Rambo” Henriksen carried his post bag in Trondheim’s streets between training sessions and matches throughout his football career. Maybe that laid the foundation for tough tackles? Photo: Morten Holm / NTB Are you going to send Christmas cards this year? Yes. It is tradition and culture. No. I settle for a snap to Grandma OJ! I have forgotten that. Show result In a small second-hand shop At this time of year, our letterbox should really be full of cards with elves, snow-covered landscapes, small birds in bird’s necks or perhaps something else truly nationally romantic. All with a small greeting on the back. But the mailbox is empty of Christmas cards. Where have they become? Many old cards have in any case ended up in a second-hand shop in Storgata in Oslo. Here, Johan Emil Kallevik has collected hundreds of thousands. Sorted in plastic pockets and categorized by county, motif, or artist of the motif. – I have two departments. Over here, we have those that cost NOK 50 and more. Over there they cost from NOK 25 and up. Four by four cards are placed together in plastic pockets. They stand in boxes in a row inside the room. Johan draws a random card. – Here is one by Per Krohg. He has decorated, among other things, Oslo City Hall. Most great artists have drawn Christmas cards. Johan Emil Kallevik has lived by selling old postcards for 27 years. Photo: Anders Werner Øfsti / news – Easier with Snapchat Margrete Røskar Brenna is 17 years old and has a Saturday job in Johan’s shop. – Many people come by. Many collectors. Johan used to say that the best gift for the parents’ generation is old postcards, but there are also many young people who come by. It is “in” with second-hand shops. Have you ever sent Christmas cards? – I actually tried a bit last year. I thought it was so sad that the old relatives sent and didn’t get anyone back, but it’s easier to just send a message on Snapchat. Still, it’s cozier with a real card, says the 17-year-old. – It is very exciting when a personal card arrives in the post. They are treasures from the past – and the cards are really nice to look at. They last a long time. Margrete picks up a card and reads. “Merry Christmas and a happy New Year from your old friend Irene. Must say hello from Guldborg”. The names may indicate that it has been a while since it was written. Margrete Røskar Brenna thinks it’s a bit sad that the Christmas cards are about to disappear. Photo: Anders Werner Øfsti / news Hang them up on a string An SMS or a snap does not strain the postman’s back, but even postman Henriksen misses the Christmas cards. He thinks back to when he trotted along the streets in Trondheim between training sessions at Lerkendal. – We didn’t just send cards to other cities and places, but also to people in the same city. It was a bit cozy. I remember my mother used to thread the cards on a string which she hung up so that everyone could read. It’s a bit more difficult to string Tiktok messages on a string, and there will hardly be any antiquarian shops in the future that sell old snaps or text messages either. The greetings on a small piece of Christmas-decorated cardboard seem to disappear. But – with that perhaps also dies an ever-so-small extra moment of stress at Christmas. Because at the moment it was too late to send a greeting back, another Christmas card appeared in the mailbox. From an old great-uncle or a friend you had forgotten to write Merry Christmas! to. Box on box, shelf on shelf. If you don’t get any Christmas cards yourself anymore, you can always buy some old ones. Photo: Anders Werner Øfsti / news
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Christmas cards, a tradition at Christmas that you will soon only find in second-hand shops and antique shops – news Trøndelag
