The "Lost Art of Handwriting" Story

It was an ordinary day. Typing away on my Mac. The key word in the last sentence is "Typing." I have become addicted to typing. Never write anything in longhand anymore. How about you? At times I will PRINT a note to remind me to do something. I also PRINT notes to my wife, for if I wrote them in cursive she may not be able to read them. Sad that so many people can't write in cursive that you can read it. It must be a real struggle to be a pharmacist and have to decipher hand-written notes and prescriptions from doctors. I think they must have courses in med school to teach you to write illegibly. When my mom and dad were growing up they didn't have computers and in some instances didn't even have typewriters. They learned penmanship in school. Everyone wrote the same. So you could read it. I have looked at penmanship textbooks and was amazed that everyone was taught the same way to write in cursive. I may have been taught some cursive, but evidently failed the course. Was looking at an article a few weeks ago titled "The swift death of letter writing" in which the author said that we are besieged by faster, cheaper, more convenient electronic communication, and the once essential practice of putting pen to paper is fast disappearing. I kind of refer to it as another lost art. I love reading the many letters that Mrs. Sally, my wife's former boss, sends to me. She was an English major in college and you could tell it. Her letters, whether they were birthday greetings, thank you notes, or just letters to say hello featured these beautiful flowing words and letters that you just knew had to come out of a pen with love and inspiration. I often wished I could write like she does. She doesn't have a computer!! A gift of stationery to her is a joyful reminder that you appreciate what she can do with a fountain pen. My mother recently shared a letter with me that was written a few weeks ago by a good friend of hers. Woman is 89 years old and loves to write letters. I did struggle to read it because she writes so small, but at least she writes it by hand. And, she's 89!! People her age could write extremely well in cursive. Many of us would type the letter on a computer and mail it or worst than that, send it by email. Did you know that the US Postal Service says that the average household receives one personal letter every seven seeks, compared to one letter every two weeks 20 years ago. No wonder the Post Office is having financial trouble. Remember that the next time you write an email to someone. At times I go through my old scrapbooks to find photos to illustrate a story I may be typing and come upon a handwritten letter that I wrote to my mom and dad. I found letters from camp, church retreats and vacations with a friend in the scrapbook. Neat to read history. Will you keep your emails for 50 years? I doubt it. My wife has a friend who loves to write letters to both her and me. You know if you are ill, you will probably get a letter from Marg. You know if you are celebrating a special event or occasion you will probably get a letter from Marg. And, she has fantastic cursive handwriting. And she illustrates her letters. Yep, with beautiful artwork. We have saved almost every letter and card that she has ever sent to us. I have included one of her letters with this story so you can see how important it is to be able to write and send beautiful notes to friends. So, get busy; go out and buy yourself a box of blank cards, a good pen and start writing. Your friends will appreciate it. I know for a fact they will. It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.