Starting Early

In the early posts of The Letter Writing Revolution, I had attempted to hook up some of your children so that they could begin the wonderful experience of having a pen pal. It didn't pan out for a couple of reasons. One: I didn't know how to execute my plan and two: I don't think, at the time, those following TLWR had the children or the desire to participate. Maureen, over at Twig and Toadstool, has written a post to connect children for pen pal-ing. I know Maureen personally so I know you are in good hands. If you have children who want to write letters to children their age, head on over to Maureen's blog, leave a message with your children's names, ages and your email address and Maureen will contact you in a week or so with your match-up. Many of the Canadian and American kids really hope to be connected with a child in another part of the world, so if you are one of my international followers, consider this. Let's get children writing letters so they, too, can experience the joy and the delayed gratification involved in the process of writing and receiving a handwritten letter.

When I was a kid, letter writing was just a normal part of your activities. If you met a friend at summer camp, you kept in contact with them by writing and then mailing a letter. Yes, telephones existed in my childhood (I'm not a dinosaur!) but long distance phone calls were expensive and considered unnecessary when you are 11 years old. So we wrote letters. Stationery was easily accessible. You could by pads of the fancy stuff for very little and you could buy it anywhere: Woolworths, Woolco, Giant Tiger and even at Linda's Sundries shop right here in Cobden. Everyone, it seemed, sold stationery because everyone was writing letters.

I didn't get my own email address until my mid-20's when a friend in BC introduced it to me. She might has well have introduced me to crack cocaine. I was hooked immediately and high from the instantaneous connection I had with my friends in Ontario. I didn't own a computer so craved the times I could go over to her home and use her computer. I also started going into work on my days off to sit in my manager's office and "surf the net" sometimes for up to six hours straight. I couldn't get enough of both emailing and the copious amounts of information at my finger tips. It was exhilarating!!

But like any good "drug" addiction, the effects eventually wore off and emailing, although, a very important and crucial aspect of my communication with both personal and professional contacts,  lost it's pizazz. Hence the birth of The Letter Writing Revolution. The effects of writing, sending and receiving a letter have never worn off. I liken it to losing weight by lifestyle changes, exercise, healthy eating as opposed to losing weight by taking a magic pill and getting fast results. The former is far more satisfying and enduring.

"Every Generation Needs a New Revolution."

~ Thomas Jefferson