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Apr. 8th, 2014 06:02 pmA little while ago, my mom showed me the Letter Writers Alliance website and we decided that we should both join. (Any organization that gives you a badge for joining and offers things like this in their shop is okay by me.) And they have a penpal swap that I signed up for, because the idea of penpals is appealing.
And yesterday, I got my first penpal letter! From someone in Missouri! And I wrote the first draft of my reply during my lunch break! (Other people write letters in drafts, right? You might decide something was totally awkward or leave out something that you actually wanted to include. Writing letters in drafts is sensible.)
You guys, I love the idea of penpals. I love the internet, obviously, and how quickly we can communicate to people all over the world, but I also love the idea of slower, more deliberate communication. I like that it takes effort for me to write a letter - to make sure my handwriting's legible, to make sure that I've said what I want to say in the way I want to say it. I like that I can buy pretty paper to write on, and nice pens, and the act of writing itself is pleasurable. And then I have to find a stamp and put it in the mailbox and wait a week or two for a reply. I like that.
Also, penpal-ing is about the least anxiety-causing way to make new friends ever. I write someone a letter that I can take my time with and have total control as to how it looks and sounds! And then I get a reply a couple weeks later! We don't ever actually meet and if they turn out to hate me, I can just burn the letters and never think of them again! (I don't expect that last to actually happen.) But if they turn out to be awesome, we could potentially have a years-long correspondence!
In conclusion: writing letters to people I've never met is great and I do seriously want to buy that pigeon. I am restraining myself.
And yesterday, I got my first penpal letter! From someone in Missouri! And I wrote the first draft of my reply during my lunch break! (Other people write letters in drafts, right? You might decide something was totally awkward or leave out something that you actually wanted to include. Writing letters in drafts is sensible.)
You guys, I love the idea of penpals. I love the internet, obviously, and how quickly we can communicate to people all over the world, but I also love the idea of slower, more deliberate communication. I like that it takes effort for me to write a letter - to make sure my handwriting's legible, to make sure that I've said what I want to say in the way I want to say it. I like that I can buy pretty paper to write on, and nice pens, and the act of writing itself is pleasurable. And then I have to find a stamp and put it in the mailbox and wait a week or two for a reply. I like that.
Also, penpal-ing is about the least anxiety-causing way to make new friends ever. I write someone a letter that I can take my time with and have total control as to how it looks and sounds! And then I get a reply a couple weeks later! We don't ever actually meet and if they turn out to hate me, I can just burn the letters and never think of them again! (I don't expect that last to actually happen.) But if they turn out to be awesome, we could potentially have a years-long correspondence!
In conclusion: writing letters to people I've never met is great and I do seriously want to buy that pigeon. I am restraining myself.
