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Tuesday, February 23, 2016

Postcards and Letters

It is pouring here, and I don't want to even make a quick trip to the mailbox to get my postcard for the day in the mail.  Hoping it will let up soon--otherwise, hoping the umbrella will provide some defense from wind and rain.

So far, I've managed to keep with the Month of Letters challenge.  It has been a challenge in some ways and a revelation in others.  Making postcards and envelopes has been fun; I love experimenting with different materials, paints, stamps, etc.  Of course, making the postcards or envelopes isn't required--isn't even the point--but I love doing it.

I've sent Valentines

And received Valentines

What has surprised me is how much I've enjoyed writing the letters to people I know from real life and to people I've become friends with through blogging.  Not all real-life friends share the same interests, so it makes for a great mix.  I can talk about books or sewing or crafting with blog friends and about memories and kids with others.

My mind goes from "Oh, no!  I don't have anything to say!" to suddenly feeling ready to communicate.  The postcards are easy and quick, but the letters have me pausing and thinking and sorting through possible topics of interest .  

The challenge doesn't require a response, but almost everyone has sent an email saying that they received and enjoyed finding something in their mailboxes besides junk mail.  And quite a few people have responded with fun postcards and wonderful letters in return!  I've posted a lot of both incoming and outgoing mail on my other blog, but I sometimes forget to take pictures, especially on the outgoing mail.

I've sent letters

And received letters
 Isn't that stamp gorgeous?

I got a wonderful letter from Melody Lee (Melody's Reading Corner) in Singapore!  My return letter went out yesterday.  Writing people that you meet online, that share your interests (crafting on my other blog and reading on this one) has been such a pleasure.  

Writing friends with whom I've been out of touch for quite some time has been easier than a phone call because I can do the pause thing--take a sip of tea, read a while, whatever--and come back without any awkwardness.  

An artist friend of mine who lives in Santa Fe and I had recently gotten back in touch on FB, now we are exchanging letters!  We've known each other since the 7th grade, were friends all the way through college, then life journeys took separate paths, and we seldom got in touch. It was nice to send a FB message or two back and forth, but the letter writing--well, it feels real in a way that FB just can't.  In a way, the letters are like we are still the same 7th graders, not well-traveled "mature" women.

 When Bryce Eleanor was here a while back, she painted her postcards to her cousins.

      Max likes Freddy (Five Nights of Freddy) and Mila loves Erin Hunter's Warrior series.
Bryce Eleanor loves to draw; painting was a bit more demanding,
but she did a great job.



 I love her messages.  FNF3 is a game, and
evidently Night 2 has given her trouble.



This is just a taste of what has been going on here this month.  A lot of reading, a lot of letters and postcards, as little housework as I can get away with.  :)

Here is a site about the Royal Mail in the UK.  So many interesting topics:  historic letters, postage,  writing in code, the origin of the postmark, mail coaches, and much more.

16 comments:

  1. Those are such beautiful cards, Jenclair! I should see if Mouse is more interested in writing to her pen pal now that she's a little older. I think she's old enough she might enjoy it more now.

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    1. Give her a bunch of stickers to apply to a postcard! Decorating it would be fun for her, and she could mail something to grandparents or cousins. :)

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  2. How wonderful! Your mailbox has been delightfully busy this month!

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    1. My attitude towards checking the mailbox has definitely changed!

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  3. I have been really slack on postcard sending, but I used to love it!

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    1. I remember when you were collecting postcards! Do you still do postcrossing? I still have not tried it, but maybe when I get through with this challenge...

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  4. I mentioned before I haven't been writing letters in a long while! I used to have a penpal from Austria when I was a girl. And I also used to exchange letters every week with one of my primary school classmates who's my best friend then, despite we saw each other in school. We've lost touch as the time goes, but those were my fond memories od letter exchanging and now you're bringing it back, Jenclair! Can't wait to receive your letter! :-)

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    1. I never had a penpal, but I'm amazed at how many people not only had penpals, but kept up with the correspondence for years. Love your weekly letter arrangement with your classmate. Before my husband's birthday this year, I sent letters to his office. Sometimes a letter is better even when you see each other each day. :)

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  5. Those are all wonderful! Your Valentines are especially pretty!

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    1. The quilted valentine from Annie is really a work of art! She is so talented and so imaginative.

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  6. What a great stack of mail! You make me want to dig out my stationery and send off some letters! :)

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    1. Letters are fun to receive, but they are also fun to write. Since you love books, you always have something to write about!

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  7. Lol! I stopped skimming this post when I recognized the drawing. My 2 youngest grandkids play Five Nights at Freddy's 1, 2, and 3 and I've seen them play it when I visited last year.

    I love your snail mail idea. I don't get mail-- I get bills, junk mail, insurance notes, etc. blah blah blah. I don't use social media so I can partially blame myself for not looking up old friends. I love that you make your own cards and envelopes.

    And yes, there are different groups of people to relate to us in different ways: the past, our families, our crafts, our hobbies, our reading, our jobs, so we should expand our circles of communication. Thanks for food for thought.

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    1. I have to admit that I will be glad when this challenge is over, but only because I set my own pace again. I'd rather mail 2 or 3 things at a time, than have to space them out so that I can have something in the mail each day. That was fine for the challenge, but it got a little tense. On the other hand, it forced me to expand my circle of correspondents and that has been great!

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  8. Such an interesting project. Love the creativity shown by everyone. How do you know the snail mail addresses of your blogger friends? Just ask them?

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    1. Yes, it has been interesting in ways I didn't foresee. Ask and you shall receive!

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