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Email is like dust on a coffee table. You can polish your empty Inbox to a squeaky-clean shine, but watch out. Tomorrow there’ll be more.  We complain about the spammers, smile at our funny email friends,  share life’s ups and downs electronically, and so much more. But what would we do without this quick daily form of communication? It’s as much a part of my life now as my cup of morning coffee.

Thinking about life before email reminds me of a movie I saw years ago. The Postman was a fictional account of what the world might be like if life as we know it were destroyed, right down to the delivery of mail. It was something I’d never thought of before, but something I’ve thought of from time to time since. Can you imagine, being cut off from long-distance friends and family members? How would your life change if you couldn’t sit down and shoot off a quick email or letter? What if our phone communication were to suddenly disappear?

This subject of communication takes my thoughts in a lot of different directions. I created In Praise of Paper Letters one day when I was reading through my treasured collection of family letters. In my earlier days of marriage, we lived overseas in Germany for six years. It was before the days of personal computers, and email hadn’t arrived on the scene. We’ve often talked about how much we would have enjoyed the luxury of email, and the ability to attach photos of our kids and our travels for grandparents to enjoy. Instead, we wrote weekly letters home to our families and friends in the U.S., then had to wait at least two weeks for a reply. It cost $13 per minute to call home and our budget was stretched to the max, so we communicated only by letters.

I’ve kept the letters our families wrote to us through the years. Yes, they may seem like just a pile of paper, but to me they’re beautiful links to the past–like a kaleidoscope of family history tucked away in pretty lidded boxes. There’s a letter my maternal grandmother wrote to my mom the day I was born.  The first letters my parents ever exchanged shortly after WWII. Letters from my Grandpa, who was a great encouragement to me during my teen years.  Thoughts from a dad after our firstborn entered this world, written in the scraggly handwriting of one who had suffered a stroke at age 38.

So much of who I am today can be attributed to the loving words of those long-ago letters. My favorite uncle struggled with Alzheimer’s disease the last eight years of his life. He was upbeat and funny, and faithful to write to me every month. His letters now echo the positive influence he had on my childhood. He eventually lost the ability to speak, but his words live on via the chatty notes he took the time to write.

After my parents both passed away, I discovered that my mother had kept all the letters I’d written to them, too! It’s fun to re-read family news and remember the busy days of raising a family and setting up housekeeping 9,000 miles from home. Those letters are such treasures to me now, and if ever we have a house fire, guess what I’ll be flinging out the window first?

Email or stationery…it doesn’t matter how we express ourselves, really. Only that we do it when we feel appreciation and love bubbling to the surface. Take time to write to someone today. It might be the best thing you do all day for them–and for yourself.

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