The Virtue of Snail Mail

Yes, I realize virtue may be a strong word when referring to snail mail but it's a dying art.  There is nothing better than getting an honest to goodness handwritten letter in the mail.  As a friend and I were looking for ways to reconnect across the miles, I wrote her a handwritten note and folded it up like an arrow like we did back in high school and would pass to each other between classes.  (To see how to do it yourself, go to this video.)

She said when she got it, it made her smile and when I received one back, it did the same for me.  Monday was a good day.  The Mr. made an grocery run without being told, bought me flowers and a card.  As if that wasn't enough, I got not one but two cards from 2 friends.  One was a Halloween card and the other was a thank you card from the friend mentioned above along with a handwritten "school" note.  I think I had a smile plastered on my face for 5 solid minutes.  She ended with how proud she was of me and our health accomplishments and that meant a lot to me.  Sure, it would've been nice to hear in an email (not in a text though...mainly because I don't text!  Yeah, I'm boycotting) but in the end, there is nothing like seeing someone's handwriting.  Just seeing the way someone dots their I's or writes their A's differently than anyone else you know makes it special.  I mean really, how special would a recipe be if it was just printed from the internet or a Word document?  But when written in Grandma's handwriting, it becomes a treasure.  In a time when all we can really expect in our mailboxes are bills or junk mail, how nice is it to get a card or letter to know that someone thought of you and more than just to "poke" you online.  (Gross!)  It could come on a day that someone is feeling particularly down or had a bad day at work or felt like no one cared.

So here's a well being exercise for you.  Write a letter.  To your parents, your child or spouse (and SEND it in the mail to them!), a best friend, an old friend, an old boss, a teacher you loved in school or anyone you like.  It doesn't matter what you say (well, I suppose it does, don't be an a-hole!) but just that you thought it would be fun to write them.  Not only will they feel good getting it, you'll feel good writing it!  I just sent one back to her with Charlie Brown Halloween stickers just like mine were decorated with puffy stickers.  It's a small gesture to let someone know they're thought of and more than just to shoot off an informal email.  It says "you're worth the time and effort and you're special to me!"  And that my friends, is a virtue!

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