The emergence of the Internet and the development of technology has made the use of pen and paper relatively less common. Other than young students taking notes in class, it is becoming increasingly rare to find people who choose to write by hand.
However, many will admit that there is still something novel and charming about receiving handwritten mail in their fence-mounted letterbox at home.
Writing letters by hand gives both the sender and the recipient an overall positive boost in well-being. Here are some great reasons why you may want to consider taking up this activity in your spare time once again:
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1. Writing letters by hand demonstrates love and care.
Writing out an entire letter by hand, much like engaging in creating handicrafts, requires a lot of care and attention to detail. Spending time and effort in producing a letter, regardless of its length or substance, shows your love and consideration towards the intended recipient.
Send a handwritten letter to your loved ones. Whether it’s for Christmas, their birthday, or for no apparent reason and just to say hello and catch up, it is a token that would be greatly appreciated.
It doesn’t even have to be a long letter. You can send a note saying “I love you,” “Thank you,” or a short message saying how you feel at the moment will suffice.
2. Handwritten letters can be kept as memorabilia.
Some recipients choose to preserve letters as a kind of gift, knowing that it took a lot of effort to create. It is also a present that can make a good heirloom and be handed on to the next generation to provide an idea of what life and relationships between people were like in earlier times.
Imagine, for example, reading a letter that your granddad wrote to your grandma from the front lines during the First World War. The letter could become a part of your family’s history and a story that you can tell your own descendants about.
Letters work just as well as a diary or a photo album. Before social media, people would send letters with photos detailing what has been going on in their lives.
If you do it regularly or frequently enough, the letters can serve as instruments for documenting your journey or progress.
3. Reading handwritten letters encourages focus and deep thought.
Technology has made it easier and quicker to perform tasks. On the other hand, the use of technology has also made people more susceptible to all kinds of distractions.
A person can get updates on what others are doing on social media, make arrangements to meet up during the weekend, do research, book a restaurant, check emails, and even buy an item or two, all in the span of a few minutes. Albeit convenient, access to this amount of technology, information and capabilities has inadvertently shortened our attention spans as well.
When you write by hand, you need to pour your full attention to the task as you cannot delete words as easily as you would on your computer or a word processor. When you write on a piece of paper or a postcard, the space is limited. As a result, you need to be conscious about what you want to say and plan how to write it down so you can maximize the space that is available for your words.
When you send messages using your phone or an online messenger, you can use short sentences, phrases, or even just emojis to convey your message. On the other hand, when you write manually, the activity encourages you to form complete sentences and more structured paragraphs to be understood by the reader.
4. Letter writing unleashes your creativity.
Handwritten letters are not just limited to text; they can also be works of art. Maybe you are the type of person who likes to play with calligraphy, create doodles, or turn a letter into a mini scrapbook by including pressed flowers. Whatever the case may be, you can always come up with more ways of making your handwritten letter even more unique.
It doesn’t stop there, either. Writing letters gives you a reason to play with different types of paper, writing tools, and even art supplies. If you are the type who likes to hang around school and office supply shops or collecting stationery, writing letters puts your collections and art skills to good use.
There are plenty of reasons why writing letters will always stay relevant regardless of the technology that becomes popular. It is an interesting and rewarding experience for both the sender and the recipient of the letter. Brighten somebody’s day by sending a handwritten letter that is sure to be a welcome surprise in their freestanding or wall-mounted letterbox today.
AUTHOR BIO
Jay Flavell is the General Manager at Sandleford Holdings. He has been working in the DIY & Home Improvement industry since 2007 and has vast experience sourcing and developing products from overseas suppliers in the Far East. Jay has also been successful dealing with a number of major DIY & Home Improvement retailers throughout his career.