Squirrels for Peace

If there was one quality shared by my mother & sister that I'd give anything to have as my own, it is the gift of letter writing.  Their gift, not mine.

Was reminded of that this morning, coming across a note from my sister featuring "Squirrels for Peace" on the front.  Quintessential Mim, blessed with a knack for finding or making the just-right card.  Our home is christened Squirrel Haven.  A family joke is that John is part squirrel - until the arrival of the cats, the backyard squirrels would gather close as he tossed out black oil sunflower seeds & shelled peanuts.  Made & sent over a year ago, the hand-made card is one of our treasures.

Looking at it set me thinking about their gift for correspondence is a bulwark against loneliness & isolation.  In her last few years, Mom stayed close to home throughout winter, especially if there was even a hint of snow on the ground.  Although Mim is just a shade over seventy, poor health keeps her house bound.  Letters from Penny & Lark, the Clanlocks & the Ripleys, from a range of friends helps keep her warmly connected to a host of others.

 

Coming across that note this morning, thinking about Mom & Mim's letter-writing prowess, was a wake-up call.  Show don't tell - rather than simply writing a blog posting about the many rewards of letter writing, DO IT!  Think about how much richer my life will be - becoming a welcome correspondent is a grace worthy of cultivating, even by the most tech savvy & digitally proficient among us.

Remembering how it felt earlier this week, when my Aussie niece mentioned that she's sending pictures of her first-born, my newest great-niece.  She could have included them as an attachment in an e-mail or posted on Facebook.  Both lack the soul satisfaction of opening the mail box, seeing an envelope with Karen's writing, the feel & sense of the communication.  

 

Just now - a moment ago - my oldest sib called, the perfect opportunity to thank him for his early birthday card.  Peter was horrified that I'd opened it already - "The front of the envelope said to wait until Feb 7!"  Bet he could sense my smile, explaining that all I saw was his writing & immediately tore it open.

There is great power in the sight of familiar writing.  When Mom got letters from Peggy in Missouri or Ellen in Texas, Linda in California or Mike in Australia, she never needed to check the return address - one look at their writing was all it took to know.  

Envelopes held more than a card or letter, maybe clippings about Jimmy's wrestling or an American Club event, perhaps pictures of far-away loved ones - it brought the very presence of the sender & everyone mentioned in the note.  

 

 

That is a precious gift as you age.  Many a time, Mom took the opportunity of free time to whip off a letter to Odessa or Sioux Falls, Hurstville or New Castle.  Imagining how Dot & Betty felt, all the way in California, getting a letter from their sister.  Or wonder how Kerry felt getting one all the way in Australia, every line filled with the pride Mom felt in her daughter-in-law's work as a neo-natal/post-partum care specialist.  I know that, as she wrote each letter, Mom felt the presence of the person all around her.  I know the look on her face when she got a letter, can remember the sense of her as she looked through old letters, especially ones from loved ones no longer with us.

Mom got letters from more than family & loved ones.  In addition to dashing off cards celebrating a wedding, a new baby or house or move, she used the US Mail to follow up on a chat down at the Snacks by the Tracks or in the aisles of Barnes & Noble or Shop n Bag.  There was always a box of paper, cards & stamps on an arm of her big chair in the living room.in easy reach, beckoning her to whip off a quick note.  

It was just about fifty years ago that my sister - studying at the University of Houston - mentioned in a letter to Mom that she was disappointed that I didn't write more often.  Mim was a crack letter writer all her life, including a lifelong correspondence with a pen pal in the remote cattle country of Australia.  I never felt the call to develop the knack.  

Jacob Kramer's remarkable Letters for the Elderly inspired me to embrace the once unlikely image as a faithful correspondent.  Peggy might appreciate an update - been years since I've written.  And Linda is long-overdue a letter.  

Dave & Candy set the bar for letter writing - they always both include a note in birthday cards.  Natalie & Carl just had a baby girl, Kelly's children are growing way too fast, am clueless what's up with Cheryl in London, Kimberly & Scott just moved to a new place, Mike has a birthday coming up...  Looks like I've got to invest in my own box of writing paper, pens & stamps! 

It's never too late, whether you're a 60s-something like me, someone significantly older or younger.  Connection - and a bulwark against loneliness & isolation - is just a stamp away!