Hi everyone, I hope you enjoyed this month’s review posts on letter-writing. This last post is a personal post, as the title states, six reasons why I enjoy writing letters to my loved ones and friends.
Okay, to begin with you need to know that I sometimes prefer to write a letter to express my feelings instead of saying it out loud. From a young age I have written letters to my family and friends. When I was in boarding school we were expected to write letters to our family back home so you could say I got into the habit of writing letters to communicate. The thing is, when you create a habit of letter-writing at a young age, you tend to find it easier and enjoyable!! Here are the six reasons why I have enjoyed writing letters!!
1 – Handwriting my letters means I can personalize it to the way I like!!
I used to hand-write all my letters to my grandmother when I was younger!! I remember I’d include little pictures I would draw and doodle along the edges. Mind you, I was about eight or nine, and almost everything I wrote included a small drawing!! I suppose it got me practising both my writing and drawing skills, plus I was quiet and out of my mother’s way for a good hour or so!
2 – I get to send a small gift with it and surprise my loved ones!!
This is something I used to do when I was in boarding school!! I would send a small hand-made card or bookmark for my siblings. These days what I do is include a hand-written letter along with a gift intended for a birthday or special occasion. I recently started scrapbooking and have made a few for my close family. With each one I gifted, a hand-written letter accompanied it and rendered the recipient into happy tears!!
3 – Handwritten letters make a lasting impression.
Ok, I’m not a hundred percent sure all of my letters left an impression, but the ones I have received over my life have left one on me!! The letters my grandmother and aunts used to write to me when I was a young girl were ones I would hang on to until I was a teenager!! I believe when you write heartfelt letters to your loved ones you put a bit of your soul into that letter so your words leave an impact on them.
4 – Letters can become tangible memories.
Right, by this I mean that when you hang on to a letter from a loved one, it becomes part of your memory of them. My mother is someone who collects many of our things from when we were younger. Some of these are letters, notes, pictures, and other small things we have given her over the years. I guess I’m a bit like her in that sense. I still have a few letters from close friends and family that I have kept over the years. For me, seeing the letters in the handwriting of my grandmother reminds me of the amazing and funny woman she was!!
5 – Writing letters is therapeutic.
The reason I say this is probably personal to me. Writing anything is a therapeutic activity for me. Yes, I do write for work and this blog, but when I want to unwind, if I’m not reading, I’m writing!! In a letter, you actually have a lot of freedom. Unless it’s a cover letter for a job application or something serious, personal letters can include anything your heart desires. I’m not saying you should fill it with bad language, but you don’t have to follow any hard and fast rules. Just as long as it has a decent greeting and salutation at the end, the middle is all up to your imagination!!
6 – I know that the letters I send out are appreciated!!
Again, I’m not completely sure, but my mother agrees with me and tells me she always has!! A few I’ve written have sent a few recipients to tears, but that would have been because they were accompanying a special birthday present!! Personally, any letters I have received are appreciated because I know the friends or family members had gone to a fair bit of effort to send it to me, and I guess it’s reciprocated when I send them.
So, that’s me in a nutshell. Well, the letter-writing part of me anyway!! What about you?? Do any of you enjoy writing letters to loved ones? If you do, I’d love to hear any of your reasons for writing letters.
I hope you enjoy the rest of the posts coming up.
Stay safe and keep reading,
Miss Mahee
