Words by Kaylin Sullivan
Do you remember hoping (a part of you truly believing) you’d get that letter from Hogwarts on your eleventh birthday? A new, promising, magical world of possibilities would be tangible in your hands by means of words on parchment, sealed with wax, addressed to you. Yet here we are- probably over a decade later, sans a Hogwarts education and living the daily struggle of awkward miscommunication presented by the limits of texts and emails; trying desperately to bring some magic to the world through creative application of emojis (or perhaps making a statement through the deliberate omission of emojis).
The announcement of your secret magic powers aside, there is
truth in the magic of a letter. The romance, the sincerity, the art of
it speaks to the soul in a way we’re craving as these digital days of disposability
roll by, uninspired. As writers of course, we fiercely believe in breathing
life back into the letter, and here’s why.
Let’s Be Real
God, there’s nothing like the sigh of relief you breathe when you
can just be real. Like coming home and taking your shoes off after work, maybe
pouring a glass of wine. Writing and trading letters feels like this in the
sense that you’re letting your guard down and expressing yourself sincerely.
Staying in touch with this authenticity and vulnerability is something we need
to be conscious of maintaining if we’re going to stay full of creativity and
joy in contemporary culture; and if we look at a lot of current trends there’s
tons of evidence of the need for this realness.
We’re total suckers for vintage and craft-style trends, and
perhaps it’s because they’re a throwback to more authentic times when whether
something was beautiful and created with care really mattered. Letters are like
vintage craft texts and we think that’s really cool. There is value in that
which takes time and thought, and this is why a letter is in fact so valuable.
It takes time to craft, it’s a unique expression of a unique individual, it’s
invested with emotion and time- you can feel it in your hands and your
heart- and that– is cool.
Well, that’s Healthy
Wellness is the new black. We all want to thrive and be our
shiniest, coolest best and with the researched proof that is absolutely
everywhere now, we’re now lucky enough to know that to achieve your ultimate
cool, you’ve gotta keep mind, body and soul healthy. Writing letters is a
phenomenally therapeutic exercise for mental and emotional health benefits. The
beauty of a letter is that you don’t actually have to send it. You can write
letters to yourself, letters to people in your life, or to institutions, or to
people you’d like to meet one day as a personal exercise without necessarily
sending them. Keep them, bury them, burn them- whatever you do, the practice of
putting pen to paper and allowing it to liberate everything inside you is a
helpful way of processing and understanding your thoughts and emotions. It can
also be a fantastic form of communicating within relationships as a means to
properly express what you’re truly feeling without getting interrupted or
fumbling your words. The self exploration of letter writing not only makes this
an avenue of interpersonal communication, but also communication with the self.
Yay for wellness!
Slow Down.
Ok, so maybe not quite as slow as the SA post office (which FYI
is slower than the the Roman Empire’s delivery service 2,000 years ago according to a recent
experiment). If you’re posting letters in South Africa, perhaps
private courier is your go-to. But aside from the healthy dose of patience and
anticipation we engage with through trading snail mail letters, the act of
writing the letter itself is also a great way to slow down. Sitting quietly,
comfortably and getting out your pen and paper is a great way to zen out.
Xxx, Lots of Love
Nothing says love like a letter; and love is always the answer,
right? Laaame, you might say.
But, like, so true- let’s be honest. They don’t have to be love letters per se,
but there is something heartfelt in it, and Romantic in the true sense of the
word the encumbers sentimentality, appreciation of beauty and imagination.
Consider this excerpt from one of poet John Keats’ letters to lover Fanny
Brawne:
“My love has made me selfish. I cannot
exist without you – I am forgetful of every thing but seeing you again – my
Life seems to stop there – I see no further. You have absorb’d me…I would be martyr’d for my Religion – Love
is my religion – I could die for that – I could die for you…”
I mean, does that not just feel like chocolate for the soul? But
even if this kind of sentimentality is not your thing, we all wanna spread a
little love to those we hold dear from partners to friends and family, and
putting it in a letter is a personal way of saying “hey, you mean something to
me,” that we all just kind of need, that just simply feels good for everyone
involved.
So perhaps instead of deliberating whether or not you’re an emoji
person, get in touch with something a little more authentic. Level up by going
deep, or hey, make your letter funny or just beautiful to look at- whichever
way you decide to go with it, this is an opportunity to express your
individuality and get thoughtful and creative.