I’m not exactly sure when and how it started, but somewhere in my childhood I became a prolific correspondent. A cousin in New Brunswick, a summer friend who lived in Summerside, my sister, who was living in Massachusetts and then Ontario, along with various other relatives, became the focus of my output.
My letter writing tied into some of my other interests, including a love of stationery, an early interest in illustration, especially that time, in the mid-70s, an obsession with the artwork of Holly Hobbie, Betsey Clark, and Kate Greenaway, or anything even vaguely reminiscent of the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder.
With such a passion, it was pretty easy to buy gifts for me, and I was often presented with stationery and writing paraphernalia or trinkets related to these interests. And, being a life-long hoarder of ephemera, naturally, I still have samples of some of my most treasured stationery (as well as most of the letters ever sent to me in reply to mine.)
My love for this style of artwork eventually faded, with trinkets and note paper shelved and looked on with great disdain in my darker teens. I did continue writing letters faithfully and intensely, until the advent of email took over in the late 90s.
But looking at these samples of stationery saved, and remembering the excitement of both sending and receiving letters, I realize how much I miss this activity.
I am fortunate to still receive postcards and the occasional greeting card in the mail. But it’s not the same as a handwritten letter because letter writing is something different. It is the taking of time, to write by hand, to share not the most urgent news, nor the most mundane, but perhaps, rather, observations and thoughts of things happening in one’s milieu. A conversational and self-reflective piece, I believe the handwritten letter is a medium that wasn’t replaced by technology, but merely negated. It’s a form of communication made absent, not obsolete, by technology.
And like the renewed interest in the simplicity of days gone by (there has been a return of the rag doll style in the fashion world for awhile now) maybe my stationery collection needs dusting off, and maybe my love of letter writing is need a revival?
I remember those Holly Hobbie cards! And I remember the Betsey Clark illustrations as well, and if I rummaged in the basement for a bit I think I could find some of her wrapping paper. I rarely write a letter or card anymore, though I always intend to. My mother, who is 97, still writes many cards and letters each week, cutting out things from the newspaper to send to friends in far-flung places who might like a bit of PEI news. She never entered the digital realm, and so has continued her lifelong writing habit.
Hi Thelma, I got locked out of my website for awhile and never saw this comment from you for a few months.(I just discovered that I can actually reply to messages.) Thanks for reading. I love that your mother still sends cards and letters. I have been trying to take it up again too. Hope all is well! thanks,Andrea