Letter writing is a lost art these days. Text messages, emails, tweets, Zoom, Skype, and FaceTime are common ways most people communicate now. Taking time to compose a hand-written letter for someone is a gift of real value, and receiving one is a treasure.

Writing a Letter

In the past, writing a letter was a common practice. Much of what we know about historic events is due to letters written to family members. People read, shared, and stored letters as a personal communication. Whether formal or informal, letters carried a message that was important to the sender.

As a student, I learned about the structure and required elements of a letter: address block, date, salutation, body, closing, and signature. I suspect that lesson is a thing of the past.

However, holding a letter that someone took the time to compose and send is still a cherished moment. Writing a letter causes one to slow down and put words to paper by hand. That’s what makes it so special. Of course, a letter can be created on the computer too.

Why I am focused on Letter Writing?

This week while wandering on Facebook, I came across a situation that spoke to me. (Unfortunately, I can’t remember who gets credit for sharing the original posting.)

Due to the Corona virus, individuals in senior care and assisted living facilities are not able to have visitors. One enterprising care provider with multiple facilities in North Carolina took to Facebook and requested letters for their residents. The response has been terrific.

Call to Action

Take a few minutes to go to Facebook and scroll through the posts for Victorian Senior Care. They posted photos of individuals holding signs that share their interests and favorites. Each with the request: Will you be my Pen Pal? Find someone you can connect with and write them a letter. Or perhaps your local care facility would appreciate some letters for their residents.

For the price of a stamp, you can make someone very happy. Letter writing is a simple act of kindness to someone who has not had a family member or friend visit them face-to-face in months. To my writing friends and acquaintances, writing a letter is much easier than writing a novel, and you are guaranteed a reader.