"Notes" by Susan Rios, from www.piersidegallery.com

Letters You Will Wish You Had Written


As this life passes by us all so fast, even for the young, one of the most treasured items will be that bundle of letters tied up in a French wired ribbon, or the hat box full of old greeting cards. These little bits of information about the inside lives of family and friends will one day become a touch of history for you and your friends. In spite of the busyness of daily life, writing letters has become more urgent than ever. Here is a partial list of letters you may one day wish you had written:

Letters to your parents: Although there is a trend now to stay within the family circle and settle near parents and family, there are still many who must be away from their parents for years and years. In cases like these, letters are essential. Letters to parents who live far away always seem to come at just the right time, often on the day that they are missing you the most.

Rose Envelope Card from www.allposters.com

Letters You Will Wish You Had Written


When you think of the effort that your parents made in bringing you up, your letters to them to share your life are a very small, inexpensive sacrifice. Your dishes and laundry will wait, and you will find that you have even more time to clean house and do other things, if you will allow time each week to write them a substantial letter. Writing to parents helps you in every stage of your life, as parents have already experienced these stages.

In writing, though, give the letter some depth and thought and meaning that is more than the passing prattle of a casual acquaintance, and do not speak condescendingly, as though to a child or a person with diminished intelligence. Where they are now in life, you will one day be, and you will not like it much when people begin to treat you as though you know nothing. Parents deserve just as much honor as you would show anyone of importance in society. Allow such letters have more value than the small exchanges you would have with the store clerks and the people you meet that are not related to you.

"Sincerely Yours II" from www.allposters.com

Letters You Will Wish You Had Written


As parents get older, they want and need conversation from their children that meaningfully discusses important values and reinforce their parenthood. Pioneer women wrote such letters to their mothers, expressing their personal longings to see their own parents again, enclosing little pieces of fabrics from their quilts. In dear old England, from which many of us claim our heritage, adult children referred to their mothers in letters as "darling." The bond between parents and adult children must be kept strong, through letters. Falling out of touch can, in years to come, bring inconsolable grief. When parents pass away, children will always wish they had written more faithfully. Perhaps they will one day come across these letters again while going through their parents' estate, and imagine how they were received, and how the next generation will perceive them.

Letters You Will Wish You Had Written


Letters to the friends of your parents:

Keeping in touch with these people, although they are older than you, is essential. They provide you with a chord to the past and an understanding of how life used to be. From them, you will want to know what happened to everyone around them. Many of these people are very good at keeping track of others that played a big part in their lives over the years. As these peers of your parents begin to pass on, you will suffer less grief in the knowledge that you were a friend to them. As the Bible says, "Thine own friend, and thy father's friend, forsake not" (Proverbs 27:10). Keeping in touch with the friends of your parents is a great advantage to them and will enrich your own life in years to come. While these people are living, it is imperative that their source of knowledge be tapped. They can help us in so many ways, yet some have been left, neglected, without a word from the people they once knew. Letters provide important links between the past and the present. Children should be shown how to keep in touch with their grandparents and how to save the letters they get from them.

Letters to authors of books you've loved: Maybe you have favorite books that you enjoy but have never taken the time to thank the author and tell her how much such a body of work has benefitted you. Take a moment to do so, addressing the letter in care of publisher if you do not know how to reach the author directly.

Letters to children: There is a saying, "Be sure to have many young friends, because the ones your age will die, and then you will be left with none." I once attended a funeral where there were as many young people as old. This was because this elderly woman made it a point to keep in touch with people even though they were very young and completely out of her own age group and interests. These young people long to have good communication and will value anything you write to them. They need this contact with older people. We have become an age-segregated nation, where people attend age-group classes, live in age-group neighborhoods, go to age-group restaurants, and attend age-group churches. There is the singles group, the young married group, and the senior citizen group. Letters remove that artificial gap. The age groups were created to interact with one another and work together--not be separated. Letters to children make you feel young and can be a real entertainment, as you write stories of your childhood, or use pretty stickers and decorative elements.

Letters to people you grew up with: If you've been in touch with a childhood friend clear through your adulthood, you have a rare friend, indeed. This seems to be one of the most neglected area of letters, but it is one of the most beneficial. If you have not kept in touch, it is never too late to renew such acquaintances through letters. While children are at home, they should be taught to value letters. They should keep track of addresses. They should keep regular correspondence with friends throughout the years. Mothers can give them good ideas for things to write about and encourage these correspondences.

Letters You Will Wish You Had Written


Letters to those who have done something for you: You will not regret having written a letter of gratitude to those who in some way have benefitted your life. Take time to say thank you before it is too late.

It can be sometimes difficult to know how to begin letter-writing, but one thing that is very motivating is to prepare a nice place with everything you need for writing close at hand. Make sure you have a stack of good paper, envelopes, stamps, and a pen that works. If you send cards, buy the very best you can afford and send them out to only a select few people who mean something special to you. The rubber-stampers who like to stamp and emboss cards have a great advantage, in that they can make every card special and personal.

Inspiring quotes about letter writing:

"Letter writing is the only device for combining solitude with good company."

"The word that is heard perishes, but the letter that is written remains."

"Letters are among the most significant memorial a person can leave behind them."

© Copyright 2002-2008 by LAF/BeautifulWomanhood.org

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