Now that I'm back into having pen-pals (and I have the accumulated wisdom of almost 19 years of life, rather than 7 or 8), here are 25 things I've learned from Pen-Pals 2.0.
1.
Hearing from someone you care about in a letter
is really gratifying, as is being able to write your pen-pal back to, among other things, thank them
for caring enough to write to you.
2.
You will almost certainly discover you or your
pen-pal have hidden talents when you write to each other about what life is
like where you live, especially if you’re far from your pen pal.
3.
Writing is such a rewarding experience, as is receiving
a reply.
4.
Writing letters will help you want to write more
in other contexts.
5.
Save your letters so you can reread them later to
see the growth in the friendship between you and your pen-pal months or years
after the letter was originally written.
6.
Texting is great but communicating in writing with
full sentences really shows that you care.
7.
It’s just as easy to get lost in though and
write a ten-page letter as it is to lose track of real time and have a
four-hour conversation about literally everything if you’re writing to the right
person.
8.
Writing is an incredibly effective way to keep,
and even strengthen, a friendship over long distances.
9.
It’s perfectly OK to have to stop and think
about how to address an envelope. In fact, if the first time in ten years you
send a letter is the first letter to your pen pal, you will stop and think about
how to address an envelope.
10.
It’s perfectly OK to have to be a comp sci major
who sets up three scenarios (best, average and worst) to find a “zone of probability”
to figure out where your letter could possibly be, either inbound or outbound, without
a tracking number.
11.
Cherish the experience of reading and writing to
each other and hope that you’ll meet up soon. It’ll be worth the wait.
12.
Writing will lead you on a journey of self-discovery
as you tell your pen-pal about yourself.
13.
Write as often as you can.
14.
Writing should never be a chore. If you pick the
right pen pal, it never will be.
15.
If you have the opportunity to communicate with
your pen-pal through additional means, do so as often as possible so your friendship
can extend beyond just the letters you write.
16.
The stronger your friendship with your pen-pal,
the easier it is to write.
17.
Waiting for a reply or notification that your
pen pal received your letter can feel like you’re a kid again, waiting for everyone
to wake up so you can open presents on Christmas morning.
18.
You will be thinking of things to write to your
pen-pal in your next letter beginning immediately after you send your current
letter.
19.
Your pen-pal will be thinking of things to write
to you in their next letter beginning immediately after they send you their current
letter.
20.
Writing is relaxing.
21.
Especially if you save the letters, you’ll
probably recall what was said in a previous letter in either a future letter or
in a conversation, maybe months after the letter.
22.
Your pen-pal may become your best friend, and your
best friend may become your pen-pal
23.
Write on Thursdays if that doesn't keep your pen-pal waiting too long. That way, you can enjoy the
#throwbackthursday aspect of doing something that probably stopped being commonplace
when your grandparents were your age, well before phones, smartphones, or social
media.
24.
You’ll start measuring time in terms of how
often you and your pen-pal write to each other.
25.
Write a letter—not an email, not a text, a
letter— to someone at least once in your life.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment