Tuesday, June 30, 2009

A Lost Artform


Letters..... No, not ABCDEF Gee Whiz. Cards. Stationary. Correspondence. A pen and paper.
Growing up, nothing brought me greater joy than running to the mailbox and looking to see if I got any mail. Excitedly opening the mailbox and only dreaming of what could be in there. Obviously around my birthday or Christmas time it was a "sure thing" that I would receive a card or small package addressed to me. But, I'm talking about for absolutely no reason at all, pawing through bills and junk mail and seeing my name on an envelope. Oh, the thrill that it would bring. Spying the return address and ripping that thing open was an adrenaline rush. Who loved me so much and took the time to go through all the effort of writing me a letter?


Nowadays, the computer and instant e-mail gratification makes writing something longer than a broken sentence or two, followed by abbreviated words and symbols all too easy. Knowing that someone got a pen, paper, an envelope, and sprung the 44 cents to place a letter in the mailbox brings great joy to my heart. My children know that they are expected to send thank you cards after receiving a gift. I love surprising a far away friend with either a "thinking of you" card or a small box filled with chocolates, seeds, coupons or feminine products (and, oh yes I have)! Won't you join me in keeping the dream of the pony express alive and surprise someone today. (Well technically it will take two or more business days depending on where you are sending it, but you get my drift, right?

4 comments:

Lynne said...

I'll have to give you the thrill of scrolling down to the bottom of your blog and seeing "1 comment":) Actually, I love getting your encouraging letters and cards! Big thrill for me too! You're awesome, Di!

North Jersey Christian Writers Group said...

So glad to meet you in the blogosphere!
Thanks for leaving me a comment. As good as receiving a letter in the mail!
I totally agree with you about letters, though too often I'm guilty of using email more than "snail mail".

Karin said...

I absolutely agree :) I have shoe boxes (yes, boxes) full of blank cards for sending to friends. Even if I never hear back from people I like to imagine that it made them smile :)

Nancy said...

Thanks for visiting my blog. So nice to get comments about the baby.
Letters are still the elegant way to communicate. I have a "Victorian" friend who does elegant things with her notecards and gold ink. I also love to write to my kids with notes. I'm with you to keep it all alive.

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