Why I Started Writing Letters Again

“Why bother?” is probably one of the possible responses to the title above. It is understandable and expected. After all, we’re in the digital era now. Who still writes old-fashioned letters these days?

Surprise, surprise, there are people who still do it. One of my friends also does it, but learning this about him was sort of accidental.

Long story short, we met at a website for singles. Among all the other guys with the cheesiest pickup lines, he’s the real deal. He talked to me – and still does – like real people normally do.

After a month or so, we became instant good friends. We’ve exchanged blog sites’ links and email addresses. Not long after that, I began to trust him with my phone numbers too – and vice versa.

So, how did we get to start writing letters again?

At first, I had a slight problem with my phone tablet. Worrying that he may have accidentally sent a virus to my gadget via his photo files, he emailed me his PO BOX address. I was quite surprised at first.

“Do you really trust me that much with this?” I asked him cautiously in one of my later messages.

“Yeah,” he said lightly. I was slightly taken aback by that. I mean, like … whoa.

I had no idea how long my letter would arrive at first. With the #Covid19 pandemic still going on, I’d have to be ready – just in case my mail might have gotten lost on the way there. It had been ages since I last sent a real letter to anyone overseas.

My best bet was two weeks at least. It turned out that he received it a month later. We both found that interesting.

I may not write letters for just anybody. Still, I can feel the benefits of writing (actual) letters instead of emails:

1. If you love writing, this definitely makes you feel good.

Writing letters to another person or more feels the same as journaling … or writing fiction. It’s basically telling stories and organizing your thoughts and feelings. Plus, it’s a good exercise for your arm and fingers, at least. I’m serious.

2. These old-fashioned, pre-digital era letters are nice refreshments, among shopping catalogues and credit card bills from the bank.

Have you received any mails lately? Do you still do that? Perhaps not. Maybe some of you still do, although not that many like they used to. Most of the time since the internet era, it’s just shopping catalogues (or whatever you’re subscribing to at the moment) and … bills.

I remember how happy I was when I got real letters from relatives and friends, out of town and overseas. I got to keep them, even had to have them laminated too.

3. Your feelings are more easily read and felt through your handwriting.

Yes, we can use emoticons in our emails and other digital messages. (Still, you might want to avoid doing this when writing formal emails or responding to messages from people at work.)

However, nothing beats the intensity of real handwriting. Even if you tell them you’re just fine, they can see how hard you jot down every word. If you write in a hurry that you make some mistakes, they can see a plenty of corrections there.

In fact, there’s a theory about suicidal tendencies profiled from the person’s handwriting. If the ending of the sentence goes up, then you need not worry. If it goes down, then please check on that person immediately. Make sure they’re really okay.

4. You’re more careful and considerate with what you want to write.

Yes, you can still use a pencil and an eraser to correct the wrongs. The same thing goes with a pen and a correcting tip. Once you erase what’s wrong, you can simply start over or carry on.

However, there are still visible marks on the paper. The thickened, hardened white liquid might damage the pen’s tip if you try to write on it. It’s different with deleting words on the computer screen. This is why you’re more careful and considerate with what you want to write.

5. You practice old-school patience and it can be therapeutic.

I’ve heard some younger students in my class complaining about how tiring it is to write. Typing on a computer screen is a lot faster. Everyone knows that.

However, this is one practice for your patience. For starters, you learn to be more careful with what you (want to) write. That’s how to reduce the possibility of having too many markings on the paper.

The last thing you want is to have them read your letter … with lots of markings in between. Through careful consideration, you present them your eloquent writing.

This may not be everyone’s cup of tea. However, if you’re curious about how patient you could be, try to write a letter to anyone you want. You can start with one.

R.