Few people take the time to write letters or even notes any more. Since we have so much great and handy technology, it’s just simpler to communicate in real time via cell phones, email, and the like, as described in “Do the Holidays Make you Homesick?” This article mentioned how nice it is to also receive letters in return.
Two of my girls have pen pals, friends from school who moved away. One has been writing faithfully for 3-4 years, which impresses me. I haven’t kept up as well with my own friends, at least not by letter. My other daughter just started about six months ago, but also writes consistently. They call and email too, but it’s nice to have handwritten letters, something tangible to hold onto. I gave both some cute note cards with matching envelopes for Christmas and I like to give all the girls pretty stationery sets to encourage writing letters and notes.
You can also make stationery using your computer and printer. Desktop publishing programs are cool, but you can use something as simple as the word art function in Microsoft Word or make your own designs with the very simple Paint program. Just make sure to leave the body of the page white (to avoid using a ton of ink) or very light in color (so you’re writing isn’t lost in the color).
Sit down with your kids and teach them how to write great letters. Encourage them to keep up with it. You know grandparents would love a letter and they can even send their siblings a note, just so everybody gets some mail occasionally. This might just encourage you to write friends and family more regularly in the New Year as well (or to sneak a surprise note or card into the mail for the kids).
When is the last time you sent anyone a handwritten note or letter?
Pen Pal or Friendship Postcards or Note Cards