Why You Should Write Your Grandchildren a Letter
I love the Internet and email but there is no substitute for a handwritten letter. Many years ago when I went away to college there was no such thing as email and so my mother wrote me letters. We talked on the phone too, but those conversations are long forgotten. The letters I still have and still read 40 years later.
My mother died in 1990 at the age of 51 and so her letters are extra precious to me. They aren’t lengthy and are usually about mundane things like what they had for supper, what she was growing in her garden and incidents that happened at the school where she taught. I’m sure she thought they were boring but they weren’t. And I’m sure she had no idea that I would keep them, treasure them and re-read them time and time again.
Mom’s letters to me were one of the best things she left me. They are a written testimony of her love for me and a true gift that I value greatly.
I am blessed that I get to see my children and my grandchild on a regular basis but I still send them cards and write them letters. There is just something special about seeing a loved ones handwriting on paper. If you haven’t written a note or sent a card to someone you love lately, why not do it today?
Have a great weekend!
Nana Teresa
Teresa-
I wrote my post on the importance of letter writing – the one inspired by this post you wrote. I thought you might get a kick out of the letters:
http://mcquill-land.blogspot.com/2010/08/making-memories-monday-communicating.html
I hope Abby writes you wonderful letters as well.
Thanks Annie Joy, you are sooo right!
keep your copy of the book. I want to see it!
Amen….notes, letters, cards, they show how much we care and there’s no love like a mother’s love.
Love ya Toots!
I so agree with you about blogging…it is a record of good and bad times gone by. Loved the story of your letter. How precious and how tragic that you have lost your brother. I only have one sibling, a brother, and I love him dearly. My heart aches for you! hugs, T
I have a letter I wrote to my Grandmother when I was four years old. My Grandfather found it among her papers when she passed away when I was 12. My Grandmother was a very special lady, and 26 years later, I still feel a hole in my heart left by her passing. I smile every time I read that letter and think of her getting her mail, sitting in her kitchen to read that letter, and chuckling over the antics of her grandchildren – which I know she did. I’m sure she also called my grandfather into the room to share the note with him. As the older sister of a younger brother, she would have understood perfectly.
The letter goes something like this:
Dear Grandma,
We went to the pool today. Jamie bit me. I love you.
Love,
Jenny
Jamie is my younger brother who passed away last year, he would have been just one or not quite one at the time.
Letters truly do preserve the mundane, which often goes on to become a special memory. We should all take the time to write them now and then.
You know, on a different note, I’ve found in some ways blogging is similar. I have blogged about things the kids have said or things we have done, and then gone back to read them a month or two later, and I honestly don’t remember half of what I wrote. It would have all been lost if it weren’t recorded somewhere.
I couldn’t agree with you more! I still have letters but, a lot of notes that Mother left so often. She would also cut out wise and inspirational letters from the paper & mail to me when she was postmaster at Sulphur Well. We talked on the phone almost every night but if she came by while we were at work she would always leave a note to us. They are treasured & a testament to Mother’s life. She was happiest when she was giving to someone else.
We think along the same lines (as usual)… while at Harding last week I was searching for a book to use for ladies class and I bought a wonderful one by Jane mcWhorter. It’s called Special Delivery and is about the importance of writing letters. It is a daily Bible study book and we are going to make cards and send them along with discussing our week’s studies on Wednesday nights! You might want to look into this book!
I agree completely! That’s why my blog is called “Annie Joy’s Letters”. We have so many opportunities to write with technology, but a handwritten card or letter is the ultimate compliment and treasure! Annie