Letters: paper, cyber, living

Remember the days when the only letters we ever got were written on beautiful stationery and were delivered by a mailman? Are those days disappearing? Is letter writing becoming a lost art? Most people still enjoy receiving letters, since there's something very personal and special about holding a piece of paper in your hand that someone penned just for you. Some people dedicate their blogs to encourage/promote letter writing.

Sometime ago I was pleasantly surprised to receive a beautifully handwritten letter from a dear lady who read one of my articles in the Winnipeg Free Press. She decided to take the time to tell me how much she enjoyed the article because she too, loves to recycle. We have since exchanged a few more letters, one of which I used a homemade envelope for -- made from a wall calender.

Years ago I dropped a bottle with a message into the Assiniboine River. About a year later I got a letter from a little boy in Winnipeg, 50 miles east from my home, telling me he found it, copied the address and sent it sailing again.

Nowadays many people send e-letters, what with handy computer programs at our finger tips to help create them. Furthermore they can be sent electronically, quickly and cost free and you don't have to worry about postal strikes or rising stamp prices.  My friend, Elaine has been creating and distributing a beautiful bi-monthly e-letter for a few years. It's called 'inspire friends to explore, create, encourage'. Included in it are inspiring stories and creative ideas like crafts, recipes... To see a sample of  this letter click here.

Eventhough technology has made it possible to produce, send and receive letters, I hope they never completely phase out the old-fashioned letter. I love email and can't imagine life without it anymore, however I still enjoy snail mail as well, especially the handwritten type from friends, relatives and yes, strangers. Earlier this year I took up blogging - in a way, another form of 'letter' writing, but very different and which I still find fascinating; once you post and publish your 'letter' anybody in the world with internet excess can read it.

The apostle Paul wrote many letters, which we're still able to read and learn from today. In one of his epistles he reminds us, that's we're living letters:

Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men.   2 Corinthians 3:2

This brings to mind the song, 'The Gospel According to You'