The Joy of Letter Writing

 ‘A letter is a living soul, it is so faithful an echo of the voice which speaks in it that sensitive spirits count it among love’s richest treasures.’          

– Old Goriot by Honore De Balzac.

What an accurate description of a letter. Letters are filled with ambiance of their writer and make for heart-felt gifts for their receivers. In an attempt to rediscover the lost art of letter writing, I’ve recently been taking some time to reflect and write to those I love.

Whilst home in Sydney last weekend I began this quest with some tea, wholegrain crackers and sweet potato and pumkin dip (how cute is the ‘spread kindness’ knife?!). I must admit however, my letter writing was interspersed with lots of food and friends. Each day I had a date for breakfast, morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner – busy but what a blessing it was.

I was inspired by the beautiful personalised letter paper that was given to us by Elle (remember her from here?) and her husband Ben, as a wedding gift. I’ve loved it so much that I haven’t wanted to ruin its crisp sophistication with my scratchy handwriting. Do you too have gorgeous stationary that forever sits in the cupboard for that special occasion?

Perhaps, it is time to dust it off and begin to write. You will be surprised, how much you have to say despite the amount of information you may convey through instant communication. I’ve found scrawling your imperfect letters across a page stirs the soul and completes thoughts. It is like a passage for your heart to travel through (though you need not move at all) and it reaches its destination upon the receiver’s reading.

Letters are cherished by their receivers, I know because I’ve been sent many. When Reis and I started dating he was away for a month without a phone or internet so we wrote letters (yes, it was tough but also a bit like a fairy tale). What an insight to his soul these were! Whenever we missed each other terribly we would pour over the words again and again. It is so wonderful to have a complete documentation of our thoughts in those early days.

Life is short. Use the stationary; transport your heart and do not forget the words of Lord Chesterfield should you receive a letter:

‘Politeness is as much concerned in answering letters within a reasonable time, as it is in returning a bow, immediately.’