Letters & Journals
LettersAndJournals.com
ISSUE NO. 2 | SPRING 2021
Letters & Journals
CONTENTS Page 6 Letter Writing: A Form of Meditation
Page 11 Time to Start Planning
Page 22 Postage Stamp People
3 Letter from the Publisher 5 Contributors
Founder & Publisher Jackie Flaherty
Sales & Marketing Cindy Heideman Jackie Flaherty
Contributors Valerie Edwards Renee Palting
Editing & Proofing Christi Summers Randy Kambic
6 Letter Writing: A Form of Meditation 11 Time to Start Planning 15 How is the Pandemic Encouraging Letter Writing? 18 Charms of a Small-Town Post Office 22 Postage Stamp People 30 The Resurgence of Letter Writing: A Lost Art in the Race of Technology 34 Pieces of Mail 37 Classifieds
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Letter from the Publisher
Dear Friend, Welcome to the second issue of Letters & Journals! Our hope is that you enjoy reading it as much as we enjoyed creating it! This is issue 2 and will be shared online at no charge. Feel free to share and link to the magazine if you know people with whom you think would also enjoy the magazine. Thank you! We're thrilled to have added new contributors to this issue and excited for all of the wonderful feedback we received after the premiere edition was launched last fall. I love finding articles on letter writing, especially during these isolated times. I hope you'll share a connection with someone by writing a letter to them today. Jackie Flaherty Founder and Publisher
Contributors
Renee Palting is an epistler who has been writing letters from Tucson, Arizona, since she was a mere 10 years old. Renee’s long-time love affair with letter writing motivated her to start the non-profit Arizona Correspondence Society. In pre-pandemic times, Renee hosted workshops at schools, businesses, and nursing homes to show how writing can build teamwork, relieve stress, and engender mindfulness. She now hosts these events virtually, including her monthly Letter Writing Social, which is free and open to all. In this issue, she gives us a little love offering of three articles focusing on how letter writing is good both for ourselves and the world community. Find Renee at the Arizona Correspondence Society website.
Valerie Edwards has been a crafter, maker, and artist since childhood. She's an avid knitter and self-taught quilter. She began scrapbooking and card-making about 15 years ago. Her interests progressed to collage art and journal making, mostly in a vintage style. For Valerie, exploring flea markets, antique stores, and estate sales for vintage paper ephemera and small vintage office equipment is a favorite outing. Her heart skips a beat when she discovers a metal file box or a vintage Rolodex. Valerie, her hubby, and Russian Blue cat Simon, split their time between suburban Kansas City and Arizona. Find Valerie as @EmmaLaDoux on Instagram or the Collage Art Collective on Mighty Networks.
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Letter Writing: A FORM OF MEDITATION by Renee Palting
Meditation is the dissolution of thoughts in eternal awareness or pure consciousness without objectification, knowing without thinking, merging finitude in infinity. – Voltaire The above quote by the French writer is right and meaningful. When you meditate, you invest your time and energy in your inner peace. You explore your mind to achieve a balance. Like meditation, letter writing helps in finding the things on which you can focus. The process of letter writing removes all the negative thoughts and helps to understand the needs. However, some people may not perceive the act of letter writing as a form of meditation. So, let’s see how letter writing can be a form of meditation. Make Your Thoughts Visible When you meditate, you will find that it is very tough to focus and control the mind. Whenever you try, you will find that concentrating on a single thought is not an easy ball game. This happens because your mind is always full of wandering thoughts. You may not even have an idea of the kind of thoughts that are occupying your mind and are distracting you repeatedly. However, when you start writing a letter to your loved ones or a pen pal, your thoughts become more visible. Remember the good old days when an entire generation depended on letters for regular correspondences? You gradually understand the thoughts that are occupying your mind. Once you develop a clear understanding of your thoughts, you can see how wise, foolish, or absurd they are. This realization will help you to focus your thoughts in the right direction. 7| LettersAndJournals.com
Learn More About Yourself It is not that you can write letters only to your parents, friends, or relatives. You can also write letters to yourself because when you are doing so, you can write without controlling your thoughts or caging your words in a certain way to please someone. You can be completely honest about yourself. Your letter will become a true reflection of your emotions and state of mind. When you read such a letter, you could learn more about yourself. You will understand the things that are holding you back, the emotions that are ruining your life, or the hidden aspirations you have never discussed with anyone. It can also surprise you in many other ways. Your true feelings, struggles, fears, and wishes may suddenly become very apparent, and then, you may be able to focus your mind towards achieving your life goals. Isn’t meditation a tool that helps you learn more about yourself while calming the mind? Live More in the Present Many times, it happens that your thoughts are trapped in the past – a past that is not beautiful or even worth remembering. When you write a letter or start practicing the art of letter writing, you stop living in the past, harboring negative feelings, and clutching to emotions that are not important in your present life. Just like when practicing meditation, the mind becomes liberated of all the negative emotions of the past, the same happens when you write thoughtful letters. So, pick up some nice stationery and start writing letters. Write letters to your friends, colleagues, family members, relatives, or even your neighbors. Sending an email to convey your thoughts can never substitute for the beauty of a handwritten letter.
GIVEAWAY #1 Ferris Wheel Press is sponsoring Giveaway #1 where one lucky winner will receive the Scribe Ballpoint Pen in the color of their choice. (Value: $58 USD/$63 CAD) Due to shipping costs, entrants are limited to Canada and the USA. Entry is by mail only. Each entry will be assigned a number as it is received. All entries must be received by Saturday, July 31, 2021. The winner's name will be selected by a random number generator and the winner will be notified and mailed their prize in August 2021. Some of the more creative entries may be featured on the Letters & Journals blog or social media outlets. Entries Entries can be sent in an envelope or as a postcard. Limit 1 entry per person.
Each entry must include: 1) Name and address 2) Email or telephone number 3) Color choice of pen
Mail entry to: Letters & Journals P.O. Box 120052 St. Paul, MN 55112 USA
Visit Ferris Wheel Press to find more information about Scribe Ballpoint Pens.
by Jackie Flaherty How soon is too soon to start looking for planners for the next year? Most of the articles I've seen about which planners work best for which purposes tend to come out at the end of the calendar year, but that's too late for me. I want my new planner to be in my hands, marked up, and ready to go well before 12/31/21. It's April as I write this and I've already begun looking for my 2022 planner. How about you? When do you start? Years ago, I took a workshop on better time management – something I still struggle with occasionally. My main takeaways from the class are concepts that have stayed with me and I am determined to implement more because I believe in the truth of them. First in the process is to list the categories that make up your life. Common ones are some or all of these. You decide.
You can color code each category with its own color if you want to designate your planner (or one of your planners) to help prioritize your days/weeks/months with such a system. We all know the importance of writing down goals, and then prioritizing time to work towards them one simple step at a time. With this color-coding system you would plan and highlight time each week according to your priorities. If you believe your health is important and a priority in your life, but you don't dedicate any time to exercise, planning healthy meals, meditation, or whatever else constitutes habits of good health, then your actions are indicating that your health is not that important to you.
Family/Relationships Faith/Religion Fitness/Health Finances/Money Fun Friends Future Next, you set two to three goals for each area. You can create both short-term and long-term goals or just short-term for now.
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We all have areas we want to improve in. That's part of what makes us human. I also think it's a constant balance of being happy, content, filled with gratitude for all we have and have achieved, while, at the same time, striving to have more, do more, be more. Isn't this why we read books and magazines? We're looking for better life balance and time management life hacks that can make things easier and better. We want to make a difference and, hopefully, have the opportunity at the end of our life to look back and not feel regret. But so often we find ourselves filling our lives by doing things expected of us, reacting to things that aren't necessarily important to us. Yes, we all have things we don't like to do, but need to do (paying bills comes to mind), but it's important to find ways to schedule time for things that are important to us.
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Will it take a terminal illness, or some other attention-getting life event to bring our attention to scheduling and making time for things that are important? What needs to take place to make this happen? We each have 168 hours every week. It varies for all of us how many waking hours we have, how many free hours we have, how many work hours we have. But, in the end, we have a bucket of time that we get to decide what we want to do. When people say they don't have time for something, what they're really saying is that it isn't important to them. That item doesn't fit in their bucket, not because they don't have time, but because they have other things that they've chosen to fill up that time. Think about this the next time you say you don't have time for something.
There are all kinds of books, articles, blogs, podcasts and life coaches out there ready to help you achieve more, do more, be more. One size does not fill all, so it's up to you to find what works best for you. If you feel overwhelmed with all you have going on and all there is to do, you may want to consider using time blocks. As I write this article, my to-do list looks like this (in no particular order): Write final article for L&J Vacuum downstairs Finish L&J layout for issue 2 Get magazine to the proofreader Write speech for Toastmaster meeting Write letters Write article for Natural Awakening mag Workout Do some yard work Plan meals for next week Reschedule dental cleaning Finish journal for Grace's birthday
I plan to do some of these activities this weekend, but some of them will have to wait until next week. I'll prioritize what needs to get done each day and then assign a bucket of time to the task. I usually commit to 30-60 minutes at a time, which seems to work very well. Today is Sunday and I have about 16-18 hours in which I'm awake. Even just assigning a handful of items an hour each will knock off about four to six items on my list and still leave me with time to do nothing or whatever. 14 | LettersAndJournals.com
Some items won't be done in an hour, but by dedicating an hour or so every day, that will help make progress without getting overwhelmed. Of course, time-fillers sneak in every day like meal prep, cooking, eating, taking a shower, cleaning, washing clothes, picking up, etc. It's not all free time or dedicated time. Some of the time is transitory such as taking a break between tasks or doing nothing for the sake of doing nothing. Recently, I read this article by Julie Falatko on productivity and it really resonated with me so I have begun dedicating time without distraction. (Hello, Twitter and email, I am talking to you.) Julie is an author of children's picture books and someone I follow on Twitter. Her newsletters are amazing! How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives. What we do with this hour, and that one, is what we are doing. A schedule defends from chaos and whim. It is a net for catching days. Annie Dillard
How is the Pandemic Encouraging Letter Writing? BY RENEE PALTING
When the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the advent of a novel coronavirus, little did people know about the changes that it would bring with it. After more than one year, the pandemic is still raging. It is refusing to bow down before the enormous efforts of frontline health workers. The pandemic has led to severe changes in society. Millions of people suddenly become caregivers of their children and aging parents. Countless people became jobless and lost their loved ones to lead a lonely life. Social distancing has had profound effects that will have long-lasting impacts in the United States and the entire world.
There is a surge in people who are now dealing with depression and suicidal thoughts. In such a scenario, many people have started to look at their life from a new perspective. There is a drastic decline in the materialistic outlook, and people start valuing their relationships with others. Numerous societies and groups are now encouraging people to engage in activities that can bring people close to each other. Sending and receiving handwritten letters seems to be the best way to achieve the same. However, the pandemic is encouraging letter writing in other ways too! Let’s have a closer look. 15 | LettersAndJournals.com
1. To Spread Positivity According to Australian researchers, sharing adversity helps develop social support and then fosters a team spirit. People's positive emotions increase the body's resistance level against any illness, and writing a thoughtful letter indeed spreads positivity. 2. To Express Gratitude During the pandemic, many people have helped each other. Millions have received food and medicines from strangers. However, not everyone has had the an opportunity to thank the people who have received some help in their network. Many people are writing letters to express their heartfelt gratitude and send them to people in their network. Many employers are also sending handwritten letters to their employees to express their gratitude. 3. To Reduce Screen Time In the 21st century, children no longer play for long hours in an outdoor environment. The pandemic rather forced them to stay indoors, and most of them are using the time by enjoying their favorite games on their smartphones. Also, with most schools conducting online classes, even small children are now remaining glued to their smartphone or tablet screens for hours, which is not good for their eyes. Parents and even the postal system are now encouraging their kids to start letter-writing as this will be a good exercise for their minds and reduce their screen time. 4. To Get Rid of Loneliness Thousands of frontline healthcare workers, including doctors, nurses, and family caregivers, are putting their lives in danger to save the lives of those infected with COVID-19. Many of them are so busy that they don’t even have spare time to meet their loved ones. Patients infected with the coronavirus and staying at the hospitals for recovery are experiencing the same fate. The constant feeling of loneliness is a bitter truth for those that recently lost a loved one due to the pandemic. In such a scenario even a get well soon letter, or an appreciation letter can make them feel that they are not alone and are valued by others. In short, the pandemic is encouraging letter writing and may find revival among the younger generation for exchanging correspondence. So, you too can start writing letters to your pen pals or friends.
The Charms of a Small-Town Post Office by Jackie Flaherty
Your friendly post office. A basic necessity in nearly every town. There are more than a few websites and social media accounts posting pictures of these buildings from around the world. What is it about these places that draw us to them? Is it their history? Or their ubiquity? Maybe it’s their usefulness to our favored hobby (stamp collecting, writing letters, or mail art)? Whatever it is, there is definitely some magnetic pull in seeking out these buildings and offices. 18| LettersAndJournals.com
Where can you find places with images of post offices? Post Mark Collector’s Club (PMCC) The PMCC website has a photograph of nearly every US post office building sorted by state and then by city. In some cases they also post a photo of the previous building as well as the current building. Visit the Resources section of the website for the photos. Google If you Google city, state, and the words "post office', you will usually see more than a few pictures as shown by Google Maps. Hashtag Search If you're on Pinterest or Instagram, you can search for the following: #PostOffice #PostOffices #postalproject #PostOfficeBuilding Here are some accounts I found on Instagram that post pictures of post office buildings: @uspostoffices @postofficesofwherever @post_office_collective @postofficesofvirginia @postofficesofcalifornia @postofficeposts With the internet, it really is pretty easy to find blogs and accounts to follow on social media. Where is the most picturesque post office you've ever seen?
For me, growing up in Forman, North Dakota, I went daily to the old brick building (right) for mail pick up and drop off, and buying stamps. Since I was nine or ten, I always had pen friends and a couple cousins with whom I corresponded. Sometime after I moved away, they built a new post office in Forman (bottom photo) and the old post office became a racquetball court. Now the old post office building is gone. It seems to me that many of the newer post offices have lost much of the charm they were imbued with initially.
Photo is by J. Gallagher as featured on Post Mark Collector's Club website
Postage Stamp People by Valerie Edwards
Making collage art is a great way to spend an afternoon. And I love to include postage stamps in my collages! Modern versions of postage stamps tend to be bright and colorful, while older vintage stamps have a more subdued color palate. Stamps from other countries may be created in more unusual shapes – like triangles, squares, and circles – compared to our basic rectangles in the U.S. This mixture of colors, shapes, and eras lends distinctive interest to my collages. I use postage stamps that honor a place or commemorate an event to enhance the story I’m building in my collage. Then, the postage stamp is one of the elements contributing to color, texture, and layers of the collage rather than being the focal point. 22 | LettersAndJournals.com
Can a postage stamp form the focal point of a collage? Have you ever tried creating postage stamp people? Making postage stamp people can be challenging to create, but the end result is uniquely worth it. WHERE TO START When making postage stamp people I usually have a specific project in mind like a zine or a postcard swap. For a zine I would choose a series of postage stamps with a common theme, as with the zine I created of Great Musicians in Margarete Miller’s Collage Art Collective zine swap (see image on page 24). A postcard swap might lend itself to an individual theme. So, I begin by choosing a variety of stamps that will enhance my project and theme.
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NEXT STEP – THE BODY This can be the most fun – and tricky – part. When pairing stamp heads with bodies I consider size as well as style. I usually select stamp heads that are proportional in size to the body. Too large of a body will yield an awkward “pin head” appearance. On the other hand, a smallish body on a larger head could be the comical effect I’m going for. Postage stamps are created in a variety of illustration styles ranging from cartoonish and exaggerated to a more realistic, almost photographic quality. I choose a range of body styles to mix and match with the stamp heads I’m using to achieve a range of serious to humorous results. The small rolodex card featuring a stamp of Igor Stravinsky (image on page 23) uses images from the Dover publication Old-Fashioned Music Illustrations selected and arranged by Carol Belanger Grafton. For my Great Musicians zine (page 24), I chose all the bodies from this Dover publication as well. The technique of using a single source for bodies provides a unifying element throughout the zine, compared to the postage stamp heads which are in a variety of styles and colors.
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I go on a treasure hunt when looking for body images to make postage stamp people. Tim Holtz Paper Dolls are a good source because they’re realistic and come in a variety of sizes to match postage stamp heads. Both my bookmark with author John Steinbeck’s stamp (page 28), and my collage of Jan E. Matzeliger (page 26), the inventor of the shoe-lasting machine, use Tim Holtz Paper Dolls. Magazine images, photographs or illustrations, can yield a variety of body sizes and styles for making postage stamp people. Using old photographs, found in a thrift store or from a personal family album, could be a fun way to create postage stamp people. There are too many internet sources for body images to list here! Besides the obvious Google images, one of my favorites is Raw Pixel. I found the background images I used to make my Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo (page 25) and Sally Ride (page 25) postcards on the internet. If you like to draw or paint, try creating your own body images. Designing the exact size and style of body image is a perfect way to complete your postage stamp people. I’ve never matched postage stamp heads to bodies of animals, but such creatures could be entertaining.
REFINING AND ENHANCING I like to think about the overall color composition when creating postage stamp people. It’s usually possible to create a harmonious combination between the stamp head and body, unless I’m going for a wonkier effect. In that case, anything goes, colorwise! Another consideration for me when making postage stamp people is the orientation of the person’s face and head on the stamp. I try to match a front-facing stamp head with a full-on body orientation, or a profile stamp head with a side body image. It's best to experiment and find what works. Playful poses result when a front-facing head looks over the shoulder of a back body, if you find that amusing. Aligning the shoulder width and slope of the stamp head usually makes a more pleasing effect but isn’t always possible. For example, Cabrillo’s (page 25) stamp head aligns perfectly with Forrest Gump sitting on his park bench, while, if you look closely, John Steinbeck’s (page 28) image leans forward a bit too much and is a bit too large for the body he’s paired with. To compensate for this difference, I did the best I could by placing the stamp head at a height appropriate for the body.
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CREATING THE BACKGROUND My project – be it a bookmark, postcard, Artist Trading Card (ATC), or whatever the piece – will usually direct the elements in my background design. For my Great Musicians zine (page 24), scraps of sheet music were the obvious choice. I added tickets, birds, and flowers to make an appealing background. Words on some panels of the zine were a play on words the character depicted. “Shoot for the stars” hinted at Bill Haley’s (page 22) band, The Comets. One of Elvis’ (page 22) most famous songs is “Love Me Tender," so the word strip “tender love and care” worked here. The maps of Oklahoma and California, placed on a bookmark, allude to the arduous journey Steinbeck’s characters endured in The Grapes of Wrath (this page). Because we so often see photos of our flag planted on the moon, I added the U.S. flag stamp and drew in the flagpole on my Sally Ride postcard (page 25). The background photo for my postcard of the Cabrillo/Gump character (page 25) has so much detail already, those elements seemed to be enough. A VARIETY OF PROJECTS You can see the multiple ways I’ve used postage stamp people to make a zine, bookmark, rolodex card, postcards, and a basic collage in my gluebook. So many other possibilities include ATC’s, journal cards, and envelopes decorated for mail art. What ideas come to mind for you?
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If you missed the premiere issue of Letters & Journals, click here to read it online now.
The Resurgence of Letter Writing: A Lost Art in the Race of Technology BY RENEE PALTING
When celebrated writer and feminist Liz Carpenter said, “What a lot we lost when we stopped writing letters. You can’t reread a phone call,” she was indeed right. The magic of reading old letters can’t be recreated when you choose emails or text for correspondence. Many might feel challenged to remember when they last wrote a letter to someone. Many millennials prefer email, texting, WhatsApp messages, or a tweet to share their thoughts and emotions. Why not? These means of communication are immediate, efficient, and timely.
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They argue letter writing is outdated. After all, there are now better options than letter writing and depending on the postal system to send and receive messages. Letters take more time. They cost more. There is more effort involved in sending them. Why bother? However, did you ever wonder why some people prefer handwritten letters compared to writing and sending an email? To understand the same, you first need to know the importance of letter writing.
Why is Letter Writing Important? Writing a letter takes more time and effort than writing a text message. You are more likely to take the time to think about a person to whom you are writing. You will be more careful about the words that you are going to choose. This makes a letter more personal and much more meaningful than electronic mail. Letter writing is a mindful activity, and shows the recipient you took the time and effort to create something just for them. Many of them also love to keep the missive as a treasure. So, letter writing is a more thoughtful act than just shooting an email or a tweet full of emojis.
Letter writing is significant as words written thoughtfully on a piece of paper are appealing and heartfelt. It's like a personalized gift from a skilled artisan. You can hold the letter, can feel it, and can smell its fragrance! It will be forever with you. Unlike emails that you can read only when you have logged into your account, letters are the best mode of correspondence with loved ones. It is also good to write about something that is important to you and makes you feel happier and more satisfied. Letter Writing is Experiencing a Resurgence The ancient Mesopotamians, Egyptians, Greeks, Chinese, Romans, and others relied on letters as their primary communication mode. Even before the invention of paper or papyrus, they wrote letters on wood, cloth, animal skin, clay, and many more materials. The global health crisis due to the outbreak of COVID-19 has made people realize the importance of getting more connected with their family and friends in a meaningful way. Millions of people are experiencing loneliness like never before! Youngsters are now writing letters to their distant relatives, lovers are writing to lovers, and some strangers are finding ways to become pandemic pen pals and share their thoughts and feelings in a more personal way. Yes, as a newbie to letter writing, many are still apprehensive about their poor handwriting. But a carefully crafted letter stands out amidst countless Zoom calls, FaceTime, and WhatsApp messages. There is now no shortage of letter- writing events and virtual letter-writing parties to revive this lost art. Searching online can help you find off-line friends and long-distance connections. Be it the choice of paper, the color of ink, or the humble postage on the envelope, a letter can convey a range of emotions that no technology can communicate. So, pick up some stationery and start writing a letter to your loved one.
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You're Invited! If you'd like to participate in the Bundle of Vintage Mail Giveaway, ple ase follow the instructions on the next page.
GIVEAWAY #2 Letters & Journals is hosting a giveaway of a selection of old postcards, letters, pictures and advertisements. There will be at least 20 different items in the two-to-three ounce package of assorted ephemera. Most items have been used and are genuine vintage, but some are more recent and are pieces of mail received in letters, swaps, and other mailed exchanges. This is for the paper enthusiast! Entry is by mail only. Each entry will be assigned a number as it is received. All entries must be received by Saturday, July 31, 2021. The winner's name will be selected by a random number generator and the winner will be notified and mailed their prize in August 2021. Some of the envelopes or postcards may be shared on social media. No names or addresses will be shown. Entries Entries can be sent in an envelope or as a postcard. Limit 1 entry per person.
Each entry must include: 1) Name and address 2) Email or phone number
Mail entry to: Letters & Journals P.O. Box 120052 St. Paul, MN 55112 33 | LettersAndJournals.com
Pieces of Mail by Jackie Flaherty
What does a person do with old letters? Sure, you can save some. You can probably save all of them for awhile, but there comes a point when a person must inevitably get rid of some of them. Now what? SAVE THE STAMPS Of course, the philatelists will have you save the stamps. Even if you don't collect them or use them in your art projects, there are many who do. You can send them to a pen pal, friend, or a relative who collects. Or you can find a local club to donate them. Also, there are places online that collect stamps to package and sell. Those places use these extra stamps to bring in money from collectors or organizations who buy them by the pound and then sort them for beginners to have a starters' packet. 34| LettersAndJournals.com
USE THEM IN PROJECTS
PEN PAL LETTERS
Many art projects call for the inclusion of handwritten letters, envelopes, note cards, and used postcards. You can leave them whole, take them apart, tear them, discolor them, collage pieces of them, make them into booklets, put them in a scrapbook, sell them in a garage sale or at a flea market. The list of ideas goes on and on.
I have boxes of old pen pal letters from the last 20 years. I don't tend to re-read them and some are from people with whom I only corresponded once or just a few times. If for nothing else, I save the envelope for art projects, or the stamp for art projects or my stamp album. My collection is small and eclectic so I don't often receive stamps fitting into one of my collectible categories (Antarctica, Whales, Zeppelins, Literature, Whimsical, and a few others).
Scan any you want to save digitally which protects them from fire and accidental loss. I like to keep my favorites in a special box which I add to now and then. If you're a parent, grandparent, or guardian, you can save them over the years and gift them back to the sender, wrapped in a bundle and tied with a ribbon. Or, better yet, you can save them in an heirloom gift box.
ZINES Zines can be in many different sizes and styles. They can be folded or stapled (or both). They can be just a few pages, or many pages. The flexibility and ambiguity of these booklets are part of their unique charm.
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AUTOGRAPH BOOK From my mom I received a small staplebound notebook that belonged to her grandma (my great-great grandmother whom I never met). The booklet was her autograph book where she collected signatures and small notes from friends and family including her mother and an uncle, and some friends. This is from the 1890s. POSTCARDS I've purchased (and been gifted) an assortment of old postcards. Some are black and white photograph postcards, while most are regular postcards in color. Many still have the stamps still in place. Unlike other mementos, I find it hard to use these in projects. SAVED LETTERS I was fortunate that my mother saved my letters from the time I went off to college until
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11 years later when I got married. Shortly before she died in 1999, she gave me my box of letters and postcards. She did the same for my sister who joined the army right out of high school and sent letters from training camp, and later, Germany. 1970s and 1980s My maternal grandmother saved everything! I'm fortunate to have some of the postcards that were mailed to her by her children, siblings, and grandchildren. Included in this collection are some of the items I had mailed to her over the years. TIME TRAVEL It is like a form of time travel to be able to hold and look at these genuine articles from years gone by. I have some self-recrimination in a few things I let go of throughout the years and really wish I had now. How about you?
Classifieds
Encouraging old-style correspondence through handwritten letters
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