Even though I have internet friends and use email heaps there is still nothing like scented writing paper, stickers, lovely letters, pretty pens and the thrill of something lovely arriving to read.
When a letter arrives I save it until I have time, make a cup of tea and sit down to enjoy it properly. It is like a little visit with someone.
I know that for anyone a lovely letter is a joy. But for someone unwell, lonely, struggling... a beautiful letter is hard to beat.
Letters are economical. There are times when you might wish to send someone flowers (and flowers are amazing) but really $100 does not go far with sending flowers. Why not write them a beautiful letter, a stunning card and paper and it will be just as loved, if not more as it will be kept. A hand delivered letter or card can be tied up with a beautiful ribbon.
It's true stamps are going up and I am a little more careful. I will send slightly less letters and make them bigger ones! And due to postage I am thinking all the time what little gifts can I include in a letter or card and not need to send a parcel. There are so many things!
For little inclusions you can add tea bags or coffee sachets, cocoa etc and the idea is the person will make it up and read your letter. That is pretty sweet.
My current list of little gifts includes... pressed flowers, a hanky, a packet of seeds for the gardener, embroidery floss for an embroiderer, labels... for mail, for hand made items, for jam etc. depending... a packet of stamps (ultimate gift for pen friends!) gift tags, holy cards, tiny notebook, note paper, sticky notes, book mark, voucher, perfume sachet, soap leaves, little booklet...
I am sure there are millions more!
If you are not very mobile, or someone else is, letters can be a little ministry. It is a way of visiting the lonely or encouraging someone. Older people that are not using the internet and are hard to keep in touch with usually just love a letter.
I keep a lot of letter writing things on hand, mostly cards I've made and paper to use as well, plus stamps, stickers and pretty things. When we travel I pack up a kit to take with me as I get a lot of letters written then. I LOVE stationary! Beautiful boxed stationary used to be so easy to find... now it is really hard to get but I persist.
Then there's only one thing nicer than beautiful boxed stationary and thats beautiful perfumed boxed stationary! Now and then I have found old stationary in op shops, in boxes even! You can imagine my excitement. Once I found vintage wedding invitations, thank you cards etc all covered in white roses and doves. That saw me through for a year or more and was gorgeous.
I think thank you cards are another gorgeous thing. At any time a card is a chance to thank someone. But a special thank you is lovely. Just being thankful and appreciative is a gift in itself. Many times people are not thanked even for amazing efforts. A little thank you can be a huge thing. Like the letter in Great Grandmas Bible I shared the other day a letter might be treasured for a life time.
Usually we have a long list of choices of people to write to but if you would like a pen friend (or several) there are clubs and internet sites dedicated to finding you one. You might like a pen friend from a certain country, or with a hobby in common or in a specific language... what ever it is get googling.
Pen friends for kids are great. Handwriting is slipping so it is good for that. Plus getting kids in the habit of thank you cards and thank you's generally is really good. Post cards can be a great way for children to start as you only need two sentences and you're done!
I used to wait in the car for the girls to get out of school and would work on a letter or crochet in that time. But now even if I go to the doctor (and I know a wait is likely) I will have a card and pen to write in. It fills in the time and makes it happy instead of frustrating.
Really beautiful mail is a joy and if you are like me and adore it, get yourself pen friends and get writing. If anyone is thinking ohhh you would just love pink scented mail then your heart is like mine, private message me and I will happily make sure you get something pretty in your mailbox.
Happy Easter to everyone too. It is a lovely sunny day here. It is beautiful having a long weekend, a break is so good. Take a minute of it and write to someone and see what happens! xxx
My parents were great letter writers and my mother wrote to me every week for thirty years. As they aged my parents made sure I knew just how important it is for older people to receive letters. A phone call is not always much use to someone who can not hear well or has become scared of the phone. A letter can be re-read twenty times. I make cards and write the letter inside the card, sometimes attaching extra pages. After my mother-in-law died her daughters found a huge pile of letters I had sent her, no longer in their envelopes but carefully saved nevertheless. These were passed along to me. It gave me enormous pleasure to read them after such a long time. I cut the fronts of the cards off and reused them for letters to my children. They were deeply touched to receive a tiny piece of Nanna and the love we had for her, when they received their letters. Never underestimate the power of a real letter.
ReplyDeleteThat is so beautiful Louise thank you very much for sharing this. What a record of all those years you have. I have a few cards and letters from the various Nans and GreatGrands and I have made books of family treasures, recipes etc for the girls. Actually this might be a good idea for a blog post. At least we have found ways to treasure and preserve these things. I hope you are still writing. What a lovely story, thank you! xxx
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