For the Love of Letters

I love letters. The smell of the paper, the experience of putting meaningful words down to be felt and touched and savored. And don’t even get me started on pens. (Possibly worse than the chair obsession.) It saddens me to think of the art of letter writing getting lost in a sea of code. A friend once showed me this one written by Ronald Reagan and I just found it to be such a heartfelt tribute - and one certainly unmatched by an e-card.

Recently, my mom told me that just before his death, my grandfather made her promise never to read the letters he exchanged with my grandmother during their years apart. Through tears, he held her hands, smiled and said my grandparents’ love would carry on the wind, and asked my mom burn them in the fireplace in Sun Valley. She hasn’t been able to do it yet, but she’s respected his wishes not to read them. Anyone who’s been following my blog since the beginning knows I’ve been thinking of writing a book about my grandparents' unbelievable love story. I can only imagine the secrets those letters hold, and yet, I haven’t read them either. There’s something about just knowing they’re there, though, that fills me with a sense of magic. And friends, if that's not a reason to send someone you love a letter, I just don't know what is.

(personalized stationery by Red Stamp, greeting card by Elum Designs, to do list from Sugar Paper, sarah pinto notebooks at See Jane Work, address labels at iomoi, Moleskin Notebooks)