Letter Writing & Journals

According to this news story the US postal service says the number of letters addressed as personal mail is on the decrease. I don’t write as many letters as I used to, either. It’s an age of convenience. Something about a letter smacks of having time on your hands, but that’s what makes it so personal, so touching, and so worth keeping when you do receive a handwritten letter.

But is technology really to blame? In general people would rather tap out an email message or spend time constructing a text message on their mobile phone than sit and write a letter to a loved one. While I believe technology is certainly making it easier to forget about the humble letter, I don’t feel technology should bear the entire blame.

We live in a rush from sun-up to sun-down these days. The very act of writing a letter flies in the face of this crazy pace. So does keeping a journal. If we can take a moment to scrawl something in our journals, then we could scribble a page or two off to someone we know would appreciate it.

There’s something therapeutic about writing a letter and mailing it off. You can write down things and forget you wrote them. The reply may take days or weeks to return to you. This is a good thing. The act of working your hand around a pen, forming words with your own flourish, allowing the thoughts to come unbidden to your fingertips, is an investment. With a journal you are investing in yourself. With a letter you are investing in even more than just you. The recipient of your letter is also touched.

Journal writers make good letter writers. Your journal is a good place to start or draft letters. Letters get attention. If you want to complain to a company for poor goods or service, write a letter instead and just see the response. And I’ll try not to mention just what you’ll be doing for future generations by leaving a written record of any kind.

For more on writing letters see Modern Gypsy, google the lost art of letter writing or join a community of letter writers today.