I received a letter today.
It touched my heart.
Now, I’m a “writing-word-communicating” sort of person. Daily I receive a zillion emails, business mailings, memos, text messages, phone calls and an assortment of loop mail. All are good.
But this was different. It was a real, old fashioned letter. With a stamp. It came in the mail. It was beautifully handwritten on pretty writing paper. It was written to me, just me, by a dear friend in another state, just to say hello, to share her life, and to ask about mine.
I write a lot of words in the course of a day. I write on my current book manuscript, write articles, short stories, plays, and occasional blogs. I communicate with a lot of people. But I have to admit it’s been a long time since I wrote a personal letter like that, although I did way back when, in the past. Why did I stop?
“Why spend 42 cents on a letter when email is free?”
“Email is so much faster..texting is like the speed of light.” “Hi 2 u!”
“Loop mail goes to dozens. It is much more productive.”
“I can send messages on Facebook, I can Tweet..”
I’m not exactly sure why getting this good old fashioned letter felt so nice. Was it that I was worth the extra minutes? Worth 42 cents?
All I know is, I cherish this letter! I like the feeling of pleasure it gave me, so I’m passing the thought on. I designed my own writing paper today (and printed it myself, as I’m still too cheap to buy the expensive kind, I admit).
I’m going to handwrite some notes, and let a few people know how much I care about them. In this busy, productive, high tech world, sometimes I can forget about that special, personal touch. I’ll spend the time and the 42 cents, because friendship is worth the extra effort.
Are there any thoughts on letter writing out there?
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I love getting and sending notes and letters in the mail. I don’t do it enough, because e-mail and whatnot make it much easier and require less thought. But every day when I go through the mail, I’m subconsciously looking for that something special to make me smile. I really enjoy sending “thinking of you” cards to just uplift the people I love a little bit.
Thanks for reminding me!
by Kiersten Krum May 8th, 2009 at 11:45 amMy aunt used to send me letters. She was the last and best penpal I had. I treasure each and every one of those letters. I felt so special because she took the time to write to me.
I guess I should write to my nieces the old-fashioned way, too.
by Penelope Marzec May 8th, 2009 at 5:56 pmChristine, this is a great topic! I absolutely am in the “a letter means more” camp. Maybe it was all those years of Catholic schools , or maybe it was my training at home, but I always send snail-mail notes for thank yous, for special occasions. etc. In fact, I pick up a handful of Thank You cards whenever I’m in a stationery store. Somehow it’s easier if you have some cool cards right at hand. I sent a reporter a thank you note after he wrote a wildly flattering piece about me. He immediatlely called me and said it was the first time anyone had every sent him a thank you letter, and he’d been an A and E reporter for 20 years. So, yes, I think a hand-written note is something special, something to cherish. Mary Kennedy
by Mary Kennedy May 10th, 2009 at 10:12 amMaybe it’s because it’s so rare that it’s so special, but it does seem to matter. Of course, postage just went up today. Go figure. But I’m not deterred! Thanks for your great comments.
by Christine Bush May 11th, 2009 at 9:25 pm