Snail Mail Vs Email

Long ago, I used to have a lot of penfriends from all around the world. I'd receive 70-80 letters weekly and answered them all. But since I connected to the Internet in 2000, emailing has been a much faster way to keep in touch with friends and family or make new friends. So penfriends became epals and very often I'd get a reply within minutes. I recall having exchanged 30 emails in one day with an epal from the UK. Email is also cheap since it allows you to send long documents immediately and with hardly any cost.

However, snail mail is much more personal and private. There is a unique charm in the handwriting, the paper, the envelope, the stamps. A letter is something you can touch, file away and keep as a souvenir. It is also something you can smell! I still remember that beautiful, perfumed fancy letter paper I once used.  What's more, unlike email, handwritten letters are safer as they can't be hacked or get viruses while it is practically impossible to forward them to hundreds or thousands of people instantly. .So, this is why I still enjoy writing letters and sending handwritten cards to friends and family. I guess it all depends on the recipient.

How do you keep in touch with friends and family? Do you still write letters? Do you believe emailing is a more effective communication tool?

Comments

[FaithB]

Anastasia, I still like to send hand written (or typed) letters to people I care about, however, they seem to be a lot shorter than I used to write. I can remember writing pages and pages of information to people... but, not anymore. I find I am short and sweet and to the point. I do send emails, but I don't even send that many anymore. I love sending e-cards and writing my own messages, but even then I feel that the "intimacy" is missing. I send emails, cards, snail mail to Mesut. I miss the intimacy of hand written snail mail. The only thing I get in the mailbox is advertisements and bills. I hate that!!!

[Anastasia]

I'll never forget how profoundly touched I was when I received a handwritten card from you saying how much you cared! I mostly keep in touch through email or messages on FB considering my limited free time. Yet, I've recently discovered how much I miss handwritten letters. One of my French penfriends of long ago found me through snail mail although my address had changed since then. That was amazing! And I'm now enjoying writing letters again!

[Christina]

I don't write letters any more as emails get to their destination so much faster. However, I do send handwritten cards to close friends and family on special occasions.

[Anastasia]

I believe that a handwritten card on special occasions is so much more personal and intimate than an electronic one.

[Agnes]

Snail mail is so special... I miss it sometimes.

[Constantinos]

I'm afraid I'm a bit lazy and I never write letters. Emailing is much faster and more convenient. Besides nowadays it's easy to put up with spam. I don't send greeting cards either. I prefer calling friends or family and wishing them... live.

[Lakis Ioannou]

I think email is much more practical. But, yes, it depends on the recipient. So, sometimes I write short handwritten letters or greeting cards. I believe that an email can be as personal and intimate as a letter even if you can't touch or emell it!

[Sophia]

I usually email my friends who live abroad or send sms which don't cost a lot. Otherwise in Cyprus I use my mobile phone to keep in touch with friends or family.

[Laura]

Avoiding email is nearly impossible but I still love writing letters. Nothing can compare to the joy of finding letters from friends and family in your mail box. To me reading a handwritten letter is absolutely magical. It shows people took the time and effort to write to you, not just quickly type up something on a computer. Also, whenever I read a letter all the memories instantly come flowing back, and I am eager to write back. I feel more connected and closer to the person by writing letters.

[Haruko N]

Since the tsunami in my country, I can't sleep at night. I am still trying to pretend that life goes on. Still trying to heal. Honestly, I don't know what I would do without your emails and your support, Anastasia. If you had sent me letters, I would never receive them because the post office in my area was destroyed. But I got all your emails once internet connection was back. Thank you for everything!

[Anastasia]

I truly enjoy writing letters. They're so much more personal and real. No nicknames, no fancy names. Isn't that wonderful?

[Anastasia]

I used to call all my friends and family, any time - not just on special occasions. I'm glad I can now talk to most of them on FB for free!

[Anastasia]

This is very true. Yet, I always feel very excited when there is a letter from a friend in my mail box.

[Anastasia]

Well, I don't get on well with my ...mobile phone and takes me ages to text a friend. I'd rather email or write a letter! :-)

[Anastasia]

I also find something magical in letter writing. The whole process is magical such as choosing the pens, the envelopes, the paper! But I believe in a good combination of both communication tools.

[Anastasia]

I'm glad you are safe, Haruko. "Time heals what reason cannot."

[FaithB]

Haruko, I do not know you but I have friends in Japan. I want you to know that,we in America, are praying for you and wanting to do as much as we can for you. I teach school and I have been showing videos to the kids about the tsunami because I want them to understand that this is a tragedy, not "big waves for surfing". I am so sorry for the fear, sorrow, grief, and feeling I do not know myself. You and your country are in my thoughts and prayers. God Bless YOU.

[Haruko N]

Thank you so much. I really don't know where many surviving japanese families would be today without the help from the US. Thank you for telling your students about our tragedy. Here it is 6:30 am now and I still can't sleep. I have no one. I lost my fiancé, my parents and my 2 brothers. i sometimes hate myself because I survived. But yes, life goes on...God bless you and your family.

[Jim]

I've loved writing letters all my life, and still do. Letter- writing is one of my favourite forms of communication.Earlier this week, I spent a happy afternoon, writing an 8- page, illustrated letter to.... a dear old friend who lives far away:-)

[Jim]

I care for you, Haruko. You're not alone!

[Haruko N]

Thanks for caring, Jim.

[Stefania]

I have a cousin in England who doesn't like computers, so I occasionally write a letter. But I usually keep in touch through the phone or text messaging.

[Jean-Paul Bouvier]

Eh bien moi, j'adore écrire des lettres et j'envoie toujours des cartes de voeux à mes amis ou des cartes postales lorsque je suis en vacances. Pourtant au travail, j'utilise surtout le courrier électronique.

[Alexia M]

I think I'm addicted to email. Can't imagine myself writing letters any more.

[Account Deleted]

Unfortunately, we don't write letters anymore in our own handwriting. All of us in the family communicate through email or Facebook. Or through MagicJack , Skype or texting.

[Tipper]

The things you said about written letters is so true! I still send cards and little notes-but I've come to depend on email for most of my writing to friends.

[Anastasia]

Oh Jim! I truly enjoyed reading your letter. I'm sorry I didn't include any illustrations in my reply but I'm wreckless at drawing!

[Anastasia]

I find typing an email much faster than text messaging!

[Anastasia]

J'ai adoré toutes les cartes postales que tu m'as envoyées, Jean-Paul. Et je pense que je vais recommencer à envoyer des cartes postales à mes amis.

[Anastasia]

I don't always feel like spending time on the computer, so I occasionally love writing letters.

[Anastasia]

I also enjoy electronic communication and that's how I mostly keep in touch. However, some of my friends and family don't have a computer, so we keep in touch either by writing letters or through the phone. For example, my mother is 76 years old and she can't use a computer.

[Anastasia]

So have I, Tipper. But I sometimes enjoy writing letters or sending greeting cards.