Sincerely? Cordially? Affectionately!

Dear Friends,

Right now I'm reading The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society for my book club (which is fabulous if anyone was wondering!) and I realized how amazing it is that a whole book was based on correspondence via letters. How interesting!! Granted, the setting of the book is England following WWII so there weren't any of the modern conveniences that we have today to communicate but each of the letters possesses a sincerity that is missing from today's texts and Facebook messages.

Writing letters is an art that I think the current generation and most of society for that matter views as an old-fashioned practice and waste of time. Personally, I LOVE writing letters and notes to my friends and family. There is something special about opening the mail box and finding a HAND WRITTEN ENVELOPE from your best friend, grandma or aunt. My great aunt and I write letters a few times a month to each other. It brightens her day and makes me happy to have this unique connection her.

One of my most treasured possessions next to my books are the letters that my late grandmothers, as well as my great aunt sent to me throughout the years. These beautiful paper memories are stored as bookmarks within the pages of my books - a pleasant surprise when I take a book off the shelf to read. Writing letters was a regular part of life for my grandmothers, so will it completely disappear as the older generations begin to die? Have children today even written a letter besides to Santa (if they've even done that)?

It makes me wonder though... If we aren't even writing letters, what will happen to the love letter? Is that a thing of the past now? I'm reminded of the Sex and City: The Movie scene when Carrie is reading old love letters by Beethoven. She asks Big if he has ever written her a love letter and he says he will send her a love fax. How unromantic, even from Big! My generation is going to have love emails and texts. There is no way to express true love for someone electronically. The future of communication seems void of emotion and heart.

My icon, Jackie Kennedy, was known for her impeccable correspondence, not only as First Lady but throughout her entire life. In fact, most of the First Ladies and Presidents wrote letters frequently. There is a great book about letters written between the Presidents and their spouses. It highlights a part of their lives that the public rarely sees and all through LETTERS. We could all learn a simple lesson from our nation's leaders and start writing letters again.

Perhaps I should be grateful that new technology has opened the gateway to instant communication with friends, family and others we have lost touch with throughout the years. Email and Facebook have their benefits but at the same time I long for the surprise of a letter or card in the mailbox from a friend. The sender actually put thought into picking the card and writing the note, a simple way to show you care about someone. It takes time but try it! I guarantee it will put a smile their face!

Love,

Carrie