STYLE
THE WRITE STUFF
THE ART & FINERY OF LETTER WRITING By Melanie Carden
etter writing is a gracious, intimate art form—and it’s time to usher its tangible expressions back into our lives. As a child, my mother and I spent Saturday mornings searching for treasures at estate sales—antiques that unknowing folks might be selling on the cheap. I would always buy vintage stationery boxes, spilling over with the most ephemeral sheets of writing paper. Their charms were always competing for my attention, thick cards—ornately designed—and whisper-thin sheets of paper with gold embossed envelopes. Every piece seemed to have its destiny—a calling to deliver my heartfelt scribbles to friends and family. There is hope the pandemic will end soon, but it has brought to the forefront of our lives how intensely important it is to maintain human connection. Texts and emails are convenient but admittedly a bit lackluster and, at times, truncated to the point of having no genuine connection at all. What a feeling to receive a handwritten letter in the mail—something other than bills, junk mail, and donation requests. This gracious and luxurious art form is both endearing and enduring. Twenty years from now, grandkids won’t be sifting through old texts reminiscing about our lives well-lived. They’ll be pouring over—or pining for—tangible photos and handwritten notes. Letters are the perpetual journal of our intertwined lives.
ENGAGING MISSSIVES Letter writing can be a quick notecard or lengthy letter. But either is a tactile and always-appreciated message that strengthens our emotional wellbeing. • Handwrite your letter and keep the tone conversational. • Open by asking how they (and their family) are doing. • Include something personal, “I saw something that reminded me of you…” • Share what’s going on in your life—in as much (or little) detail as appropriate to your relationship. • Close by mentioning you’d love to hear back from them—offer a question they can answer to kick-start their return letter, “I’d love to hear more about your new puppy—feel free to drop me a note sometime soon.” 26 | OUR CITY, YOUR LIFE | MAY 2021
