For the last several weeks, I have researching and studying about letter writing, especially in regards to exchanging letters, or what is commonly known as having Pen-Pals. This quest came about through my desire to write more hand written letters. I enjoy writing and reading personal hand written letters, but I was running out of people to write. So, I began searching through the internet about starting pen-pal correspondence and letter exchanges.
I found through the research that, as in many areas, men have slowly left letter writing to women. What I found, then, was most of the websites about letter writing are written by and for women. Many of the tips are still helpful, but there tends to be more lace than grit than I would prefer. One of the standard bearers for men in letter writing, as many other traditional male pursuits is The Art of Manliness blog. With that being said, I have posted some of this research on a Pinterest Board I set up.
I believe it is important that we return to the art of letter writing. We have become to accustomed to instant communication and easy access to the world. I believe this trend has actually hurt international relations and to some degree Christian missions. We have taken for granted that all we must do is get on the internet to talk to someone in another country. If this is true, how many people do you know in another country? You may be able to get a short response from someone, but do you take the time to get to know this person in a way that you can from letter writing. It may take time, but I believe you can get to know the world and other cultures best through true correspondence. This can be done digitally, but there is so much more intentionality through letter writing.
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