Letters

I love technology.

I really do.

The whole instant information, staying in contact with friends, easily converse with people miles or houses away, et cetera, is pretty miraculous.

But there is something to be said about receiving a letter through the mail.

When I was younger, my siblings and I would sit and play in our lawn waiting for the mailman to arrive, as the mailbox for the street was in front of our house. We became really good friends with the different people who'd deliver the mail. It was always great to see people receive mail in their box, even better when I'd see mail enter our box.

It wasn't often that there was a letter addressed to me at 6 years old, but there were the occasional Birthday Invitations or Thank You Cards, and I loved to get them. I was slightly jealous of my parents who'd receive mail all the time. It wasn't until I was older that I discovered their mail was mostly catalogs, bills and advertisements.

Being here in Idaho,

receiving mail from those on their missions,

wedding invitations,

and the occasional package from home,

it causes me to think more about this classic form of communication.

A letter means something.

It represents a friend.

A friend who took the time to write me a letter, typed or handwritten.

It represents that someone cares,

that they wanted to make sure you knew they remember you.

It represents an invitation into their lives and your's into their's.

It means that someone wishes to communicate and took the time to do so.

If receiving a letter means so much,

we should be sure to send a letter ourselves,

even if it is only a few words long.

Fold a piece of paper and stick a photo to the front and ta-dah! you have only the inside to write in, limiting how much you have to write, especially when you have no idea what it is you want to write about.

However, I've discovered that once I start writing to a person, suddenly I have a lot to say. So, I'd also recommend leaving room to write as little or as much as you'd like, but even the mistakes in a letter make it personable.

Letters are pretty amazing.

"To send a letter is a good way to go somewhere without moving anything but your heart."

~Phyllis Theroux