ARCHIVE

Write me a letter

By PAT WICK

© Another Day in the Country

Letters always have been important to me. It's letters — not bills, not junk mail, not advertisements — that I'm talking about and I'm wondering if they are a thing of the past?

One friend, no, two, send me letters. The rest of them send e-mails and it isn't the same. While an e-mail is instant, whizzing through phone lines, and it's off your to-do list, it's not as gratifying. I've tried printing them out before I read them to make them seem more like a letter, but it still is not the same.

I still send letters, but I must admit — not as many as I used to send. I mostly send them to my kids so they don't forget what one looks like — I think that's important, don't you?

The Letter King was my old friend Doc. He hand wrote his letters and he included all kinds of interesting things on the inside — obviously, this was before we had people sending bombs and viruses by mail. They ruined things for all of us! Doc sent the first rose that bloomed in his back yard wrapped up in cellophane with a damp Kleenex to provide moisture. He sent pressed pansies and chewing gum, red-hots and barrettes with my name on them. Getting a letter from him was an adventure. And he was funny, regaling me with the neighbors' antics or his own! I loved getting his letters and I saved them — box after box in storage, just in case letters become extinct and I need to reread them or put them in a museum.

For some reason I think the post office must have enjoyed those days when people sent letters more regularly. Surely, letters with actual written content, are more interesting to sort than mass mailings?

I was talking with Paula yesterday. She works at our Ramona Post Office part-time and for some reason, we got on the subject of receiving mail. She remembers receiving mail processed through a small town post office here in Ramona where a letter could come from California addressed to "Aunt Gloria, Ramona, KS," and actually be delivered to her mother. "In more recent times, we've gotten mail addressed to "Grandma, Ramona, KS," or even just "Great Grandma," and we could figure out who it went to — maybe Betty or Naomi — depending on where it was coming from," said Paula with a grin.

Now THAT is service! Ramona is still one of those little towns where the postmaster knows your name — and probably where you are at any given moment — even if your neighbor doesn't. Many a time, I've had Kathy track us down for someone visiting town and they were smart enough to stop at the post office and inquire.

When I used to visit Ramona I was amazed at the personal services provided by the postmaster — above and beyond delivering the mail. Even if the contents of your box is junk mail and bills, the postmaster treats it like gold as they hand your mail through the window. Even if you haven't talked to another soul all day, the postmaster is smiling at you and saying, "Have a good day, now." If you need a little help writing out a check to pay your telephone bill or just someone to confide in — the postmaster helps and listens. Even if you haven't received a real bona fide letter in the mail from someone you love for ages, you feel loved and cared for just coming through the door of the post office.

How lucky we are to have this wonderful institution called the U. S. Mail that offers employment to a whole bunch of equally wonderful employees! And on top of it all they've gotten really creative with stamps, perhaps making up for the lack of content on the inside of the envelope, we can dress up the outside. "Hmmm, does Rural Water deserve a cartoon character as their stamp this month or a Hollywood star?"

It's another day in the country and I've vowed to write some letters today! We want to give the postmaster something interesting to sort. And I'll pay my bills affixing stamps in priority with the bills I most enjoy paying getting the pretty stamps and the aggravation bills getting ho-hum stamps. Better check your mail! You'll know where you stand!

Quantcast