These letters would be signed, sealed, stamped and delivered. Dependent on how many miles they traveled by land, sea, and later through the clouds, in days or weeks they would drop through the letter box in the front door, or await the daily opening of the mailbox at the curb.
The first person to pick up the mail would call out, "there's a letter for YOU". The handwriting was neat and sometimes recognized. A favorite cousin from "across the pond". An elderly auntie who shared family history. An old school friend keeping you up to date on who got married. The stamp, often pretty and perhaps foreign, would later be soaked off and given to a child who'd started a stamp collection.
The joy of opening an envelope containing a hand written letter seems to be almost forgotten in this world of technology and speed. Perhaps that's why receiving a card with handwritten greetings is still so pleasant. E-cards and e-mails are nice because they still show someone is thinking of you, but they can't compare to carefully slitting a parchment envelope and pulling out pages lovingly written with a vintage fountain pen.
I sit on the love seat in my bedroom in the late afternoon sun, a delicate curl of warm steam wafts from a cup of Earl Grey. Opening my mail is no longer very exciting, just advertising, medical news, offers for items nobody needs, and of course bills! But now and then, my heart leaps, there's a handwritten envelope, a pretty canceled stamp......................and inside news that may already be old but reading it brings joy knowing someone took the time to write.
Do you still receive handwritten letters? Does your heart flutter knowing someone special took the time to actually write to you with a pen?
Are you interested in joining a group who would exchange words, thoughts, short letters written by hand so that you could still experience this now old-fashioned joy?
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Oh yes! I have that as one of my "Do-solutions" for this year - real letters and cards - send with love and care. I think it's a dying art - and we need to not let that be.
ReplyDeleteThanks for "painting" such a serene picture for us!
I would love to join a group! I can't promise beautiful penmanship, but I don't receive handwritten letters from anyone. It would be a lovely thing to be a part of.
ReplyDeleteLori
Mary
ReplyDeleteI rarely receive a hand written letter these days. But can remember when I was a young girl writing my grandmother and grandfather and anxiously waiting for a letter in return. You have inspired me, I think I will write my mother and father a letter! Won't she be surprised.
Lisa
Yes, I'm interested Mary. I do miss those days when the postie brought more than just the usual brown envelope. Do you remember the old aerogrammes? I can remember writing to my Mum in New Zealand and trying to write so small so I could get all my news in. Memories eh.
ReplyDeleteI do so agree, its lovely to recieve a letter that has been hand written especially from abroad.
ReplyDeleteI have a very dear friend in the US we got togetehr throh a love of cross stitch and wrote regularly for a number of years until the advent of e mail.....now I can get new to her and from her instantly, but I do miss finding a fat airmail envelope n the hall floor, slitting the envelope and reading what had been going on in her life and responding. Soemtimes the letters were written over two or three days and often contained a newspaper cutting or a small brochure for something that was going on in the locality.
Another friend always writes on pale blue notepaper, still with an old fashioned fountain pen......I get a letter once a year at Christmas, indise her card, at other times we too correspond by email during the year.
Writing letters is a dying art.....overtaken by technology its such a shame.
Mary, I love to send & receive written correspondence! I have a friend with whom I exchange written notes often, sometimes tucking in a photo or clipping just for fun.
ReplyDeleteI can remember as a young girl what fun it was to go to Woolworth's and pick out a packet of just the "right' stationery to write a pen pal.
I would love to participate!
Chris
Most certainly, my children and I made hand-made Xmas cards this year and I refused to send an Xmas e mail or sms...
ReplyDeleteLG
Mary,
ReplyDeleteYou are right. There is something so special about receiving a handwritten letter in the post.
Thank you for your advice on my upcoming procedure. I don't have it scheduled yet, just the consultation with the doctor at the end of the month. It will probably be shortly after that.
Happy New Year!
Melissa
Oh Mary, I think we all miss mail but I must say, I am more than happy that I can talk to Heidi everyday on Skype. Having her way over in Holland, I miss her very much. This is a very nice post.
ReplyDeleteNancy
You know just how it was, Mary. I'm sad to say, I'm one who doesn't sent handwritten notes often. My handwriting has never been nice. In school, I loved collecting wonderful foundtain pens and I do still love them. ...and pen pals - corresponding with those you get to know only through letters.
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Mary!
Your post has already generated something exciting for me. I received an email from silversewer, and she is interested in writing to me. I was SO excited to have the prospect of writing to someone in the UK!!! Thank you so much, Mary, for getting this all started!
ReplyDeleteWhat a marvelous idea!
ReplyDeleteI do actaully still receive more than one's average share of hand written letters as my mother and sisters both write me. I used to get one about every three weeks but since last year when my mother finally got on to internet now unfortunately I don't get them as often, although her emails are written more like handwritten letters and I have to admit, it is far easier to read.
You're inspiring me. I think i will write one now myself. Trouble is I really do have the worst handwriting I've ever come across--I can't even read it. I will have to go slowly, like a 4 year old or something!
The other thing i miss, Mary, are fountain pens. My sisters still use them and nice paper too. It helps one's penmanship. I have this Italian hand blown glass ink well pen that I got a while back. I will have to try it out. All my founatina pens of old weem ot have disapperaed, and by gosh, tehy are so hard to find these days.
I would love to join the group. A letter from you would be a gift of penmanship, I'm quite sure.
Great post.
Hi, what a wonderful post, you have done today!!! The written letter is surely dieing slowly.
ReplyDeleteI do miss getting walking to the mailbox and be so excited to see a letter from a friend or my mother.
Please visit our blog for and related article on Wax Sealing Letters...a by gone era.
thanks again
kate
Oh yes, I do write them, and receive them still. Some of the best come from my friend on the Isle of Skye. Fat envelopes, gorgeous stamps, tiny lovely handwriting describing all manner of wonderful Scottish scenes!
ReplyDeleteMary - You've brought back fond memories... I loved when you pulled the letter for the mailbox and just knew, by the handwriting, from whom it was sent... Such a sweet memory. I do still write letters, when I have something really serious and important to say, especially to my daughters... they are usually short, but I know that they keep the letters, and that is the best of all! Thanks for a wonderfully sweet post!
ReplyDeleteHow fun!! Plus you reminded me that I need to write my thank you notes!! Thank you!!
ReplyDeleteThis is my first time to comment on your blog but I so love to read everything you have to say. Love the UK, spent Christmas 4 years ago in London and the countryside. I would so love to exchange letters with someone from an other country and to hear about their daily lives. Count me in on what ever you have in mind.
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful post! I often read your blog. It's so inviting! My husband's family saves everything and I have had many hours of sitting and enjoying reading the handwritten letters his mother and father wrote to each other during the war. Then there are letters his mother's father wrote to his little girl about all his travels. I truly hate that this is a dying art. How fun it would be to have a pen pal and open a fat envelope from far way depicting the little details and descriptions of life.
ReplyDeleteI think I'll go look for my boxes of stationary.
Eliz @daco.net
Mary, I love writing letters and really miss a 'real' one. Text and e mail have taken over sadly.Add me to the list please.
ReplyDeleteMary, I can't believe I missed your lovely post yesterday. Especially in view of the fact of a lovely handwritten note from you. I read it just today as my sister brought me the mail from the weekend this morning. Thank you Mary, it was a very nice thing to do. Letters are almost a lost form of communication and that is sad. I remember how excited I would be if I saw a letter in the mail. I guess there is nothing as constant as change.
ReplyDeleteHave a lovely evening Mary.
Hugs...Jeanne
Mary.. when I first started blogging it was one of my earlier posts as handwritting is so very special to me.... Nothing in the world can replace the beautiful handwritten words to someone... Email is a fast wonderful thing also with no personality.... Enjoyed your post.... I am checking in on new posts but haven't posted myself cause I am on alsot of meds I don't normally deal with and my head seems to find it harder to focus..... I will soon however and until then I have all the lovely post of others to read from time to time....
ReplyDeleteI would love to join a group. As much as I do love email, I seriously miss writing letters by hand. It takes me back to my days of having a penpal. I used to love that -- what a thrill to get a letter in the mail!
ReplyDeleteI would love to join your group. There is nothing nicer than receiving a letter in the mail. I truly love the "old letters" I would receive that were four or five pages long.
ReplyDeleteI think about this subject quite often.
ReplyDeleteI wish I still had a letter from my Mamaw and one from my Mom and Dad and my grandmother,Maymo. Sad to say I have just a cards with short notes from 3 of them.
I would love to join your group.