Putting Pen to Paper: Can We Return to a Lost Art?

By December 9, 2014Communications

I’ve written about how tired I am of e-mail. It has its uses, but fails in many ways. Phone calls are great, when needed. Texting is fantastic for a lot of quick communication. I’ve been thinking, though, of doing more writing by hand starting with the end of this year.

No, no: I don’t just mean holiday cards. I mean letters. Not a lot. Just a few.

My friend Amanda is very, very good at this. She sends the best birthday cards and handwritten “thinking of you” notes I’ve ever received.

A little secret? I keep them all. I keep all the handwritten, mailed notes I get. I have a rather large drawer full of them. When I’m having a particularly crappy day, it is really nice to open that drawer and read the words of dear friends and family.

So why haven’t I returned the favor? I get hung up on the lack of awesome stationery and an available pen. (Pretty sure I can remedy that). I get hung up on the fact that my fingers are near a keyboard or a smartphone all of my waking hours.

I’m going to give it a whirl, though. I have two very special people to start writing to, and I’ll see where it goes from there.

Do you write by hand? Do you like it when you get something handwritten in the mail?

2 Comments

  • Carol says:

    I DO love to get something handwritten in the mail! And this time of year, if someone takes the time to write even a line or two and sign their holiday cards, I notice and appreciate it. And a hand-addressed envelope? Over the moon happiness. Good luck with this intention. I will say that stationary, note cards make great gifts and who knows, you might get one of them sent to you! Cheers!
    ~sprytini

  • We were talking about this very thing this morning in reference to family recipes. A colleague and I commented that we treasure the handwritten recipe cards from our grandmas and isn’t it a shame that kids today may not have that same remembrance as everything is online.

    I shared similar thoughts on a post a few months back, thinking about all the letters and cards I have kept over the years. http://hmapr.com/what-if-grandpa-went-to-school-in-the-email-era/

    Thanks for the reminder that a little note goes a long way.

    Happy Holidays.