In the age of digital everything, we seem to overlook the small gestures that matter the most. I honestly think simple things like asking someone about their day and talking to them rather than texting mean so much more. Things that are handwritten go along way with me — trust me, I have a note from Kelsea with this great quote hanging up in my living room and it’s only hanging up because she wrote that.
When we type things, those things can’t be touched like a piece of paper. We can let all of our emotions out with writing and I will never take away from that; your laptop can easily be your diary.
For me, I just love receiving and writing letters. From the fifth grade until now, I have saved every birthday card, holiday card, graduation card, and letters — they have a special meaning to me. I also feel like when I go out of my way to write a letter rather than send a text it resinates with a person in a different way. They appreciate it more. My goal this year is to reach out to family and send them letters. Simple gestures to let them know I appreciate them. I write my grandparents most of the time but there are so many other people in my life that have helped me grow to be the person I am today.
Why don’t we write letters anymore? Is snail mail really that annoying to put together and send? That smile someone gets when they see something in their mailbox is why I do it. I live for the cards from my aunt and grandparents so why wouldn’t I return the favor? It’s easy to catch up without interruptions. The conversation is one-sided at first — some letters lead to phone calls and that’s all someone needs to reach out.
Basics
When writing letters, address the person so that they know it was meant for them. Yeah, you could easily put ‘hey, hi or hello’ and not insert a name but is that how you would want to be addressed in a letter? If it is, go for it — myself, I’m going to go with a ‘dear [ name ], hey [ name ]’ so that it’s personalized for that person. Let them know the letter is for them. Make sure everything is legible, as well — this is something I have to check myself for because I write in cursive and it can get loop-sided.
What’s Inside Matters
The letter can be about anything. Tell a story or draw a picture, personalize YOUR letter. I write to my nana & grandpa about the most random things but they appreciate it. I feel like you can write about whatever is on your mind and that person will read it and think. With a text, I feel like we can read and ignore them but a letter, I just assume that people sit down and take the time to read something that someone personalized for them so you can write anything and that person will care because you reached out.
Updates
If you need an idea of what to write, an update on life would suffice. Someone out there might have older relatives that don’t use their computer or text so reaching out with a letter gives them the ability to know what is going on. I always update my grandparents and aunt, they love it. When I stayed home, it was easier to have phone calls but letters make everything easy again since I can write them at work or wherever I am at. Just update a person on anything; it could be something you touched base on or how much you want a dog.
Just Because
This matters most to me. You thought of me enough to just write me with no real plan in mind, just to reach out. I recently wrote my aunt, simply because we don’t talk on the phone as much as we used to when I was younger and because I know she’s not part of the online world. I’m interested in knowing what’s going on – be interested in a person and what’s happening with them. It can be so simple but it will matter. Write me a letter just to say ‘hi, how are you?’ and it’s going to make my day. The smallest things make my day and I’m sure it makes other people’s days, as well.
There’s just something about a handwritten letter, they never go out of style! Make sure that you have the correct addresses when you go to send the letter because nothing would be worse wondering why you haven’t heard from that person and the fact that they never got that letter. Does anyone still write letters? If not, why?!
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