Tuesday, June 26, 2012

& yes, they used to come on stationary: more hand-written letters

holy wow, it has been awhile.  i haven't been using my time to carve cougars out of wood.  or get my tan on. i did watch a LOT of Downton Abbey.  and while i was away, & listening to some bruce springsteen (thanks jimmy fallon for showcasing his cool!), a neat thing happened:

always a proponent of the hand-written letter (especially the love letter) i was interviewed a few months ago for an article on their importance & evolution for Military Spouse magazine.  for me, the most inspiring thing about the letter, in addition to the emotions & day to day narratives that they evoke, is the individual narrative they provide.  & the historical ones.  & the personal effect of the hand writing itself on family members, who, years from now will discover that letter.  & be able to imagine their loved ones seated & scribbling adoration or news to their wives or husbands or friends back home.  especially, as in the case of my grand parents, during war times.  while i am so thankful for the modern day immediacy of email & skype that tethers us quickly to our loved ones now, despite any distance, i absolutely covet the letter.  the paper, held by the writer, the ink from their pen, the excitement at the mailbox.  for me, it is priceless.  & i am sad to see that its form is quickly vanishing.

i was so thankful to be included.  find the full article, if you can get your hands on it, in the may issue.

inspired to write your own love letter?  on actual paper (what is that you say?  is that an app?)?  check out the gorgeous letterpress stationary at Smudge Ink or take a little browse on etsy, where i have found some amazing letterpress vendors.  come on, set down that hand held device & pick up the original: a pen.  & get your hand-written adorations on.