Love letters

Did I ever mention that I love letters? Probably. I cannot say that often enough, and I don't do that because I hope to receive more through that, I just want to emphasize how much I love and appreciate real letters. Ha ha, not such a long time ago, for example around the time I was born - people would have looked at me - confused - what I would mean with real... yesterday I received a "real" one. From my lovely Oma in Flensburg, Germany, sending her love over to Holland, with a lovely card. And I must say - it really made my day! This handwritten piece of paper, thoughts on paper! How lovely. The amount of emails I write per day is kind of huge, and I am absolutely sure that with 95 % of all emails I write are completely free of any emotion. (Oh, maybe anger, if accountants do not do their work properly, and ask to much money for it ha ha). I write them in a quite automatized way, using the same phrases and words, excuses and questions all over and over again, just trying to avoid any redundant things, repeating words or starting too often with "I". Before sending it out I do a spell check and that is it.

Real letters are written with love. With emotion, with real thoughts towards the receiver. It is by far beyond pure exchange of information. And that is the beauty in it.

I find we - me too, write too less. Usually it is only the obligatory (I do not want to downsize it) Christmas or birthday card. A real card or letter just in between of something, without any special purpose - that is something which can at least quite lighten up my day. Is that only with me, or is anyone else also feeling a little bit the same? Or is it maybe a particularly "girly" thing to write and be happy about letters?

When I was a teenager I used to have pen friends. I loved it - friends - and letters from South Africa, Norway, Spain or the US, it was always fun, and it was such a happy moment to receive one of those colorful letters, with the best, almost calligraphic teenager- girl handwriting, mostly decorated with a lot of stickers.

This of course went away at a certain moment, we moved, lost sight of each other, but with some I am still in touch (*thanks, Facebook).

Too be honest, email serves very well - I find that writing a thoughtful email is also possible, but to receive a letter became so seldom that I just find it worth a while to encourage - mostly myself to get out my old ink pen and some beautiful paper and write more letters, secret love notes, cards and love letters ....

From Holland with love

Svenja