Mail does not get the appreciation it deserves. The international mail system is a marvelous creation. The fact that we can send physical letters or packages that will arrive around the world in an expedient manner is remarkable. For necessary reasons, after the advent of email, text messaging, and every other electronic kind of communication, the once mighty mail system lost some of its dominance in long-distance communication. But I do want to appreciate the gigantic and logistically complex mail system. Most importantly, mail is a healthy and beautiful way to communicate these days.

Receiving mail from another person is a completely different feeling than getting an email or a text. My first thought of why mail gives a unique feeling was that it takes more time and care to send mail. While that is true, it also takes time to write a text or email or chat on the phone. But for mail you need to get an address, a stamp, and walk to the post office/mailbox. Does the extra little bit of effort required to send mail really make it that much better? I think there are a few other reasons that also contribute to the excellence of mail. 

Mail is a form of communication that processes at a different pace. There is no urgency to respond to mail the second it arrives in your mailbox. We carry our phones around us all day, a constant burning reminder of the messages we need to respond to and things we need to do. Imagine if all those messages we carried were physical mail. We would need a suitcase to carry around the mountain of messages constantly weighing us down. With our phones, we can at least get rid of the physical burden of carrying around hundreds of pieces of communication. The mental and emotional burden is another story. 

But this post is about mail. There is a refreshing, patient, and understanding culture to mail where I send a letter and a response is not expected immediately. It could be months. It could not be at all (but it’s way more fun when people respond). There is delayed gratification in mail. 

Mail also allows for far more creativity than text or email. I can draw. I use a wax seal. I can write carefully or care-free, both in style and word choice. I can send big mail and small mail. There are basically no limitations for the way I communicate through mail. It just takes a little longer. That’s okay.

Mail is more of an art form these days than anything else. I don’t generally communicate my logistics of life through mail. Bills, professional correspondence, general life endeavors, etc. all have their own online form of communication. But mail is an artistic and purposeful way to show love and communicate in today’s world. I don’t send mail to people because I need to, I send mail because I want to.

Lilly reintroduced me to the mail game a while ago and I have eagerly followed her into the mail world. Lilly sends amazing mail and is artistic in ways I can only appreciate with awe. But I have excitedly reentered the world of USPS and I hope to encourage more people to join me. Ditch iMessage and emojis and pick up a pen, write a fun letter, and find a cool postage stamp. 

I sat down today without any great idea of what to write about. But I can always talk about mail. There is something uniquely special about sending and receiving mail that no text message, no matter how heartfelt and sincere, can replicate. If you have any doubts about this claim, send me your address and we can put it to the test.