The forgotten art of writing letters

If everyone agrees that there's no better feeling than receiving mail, then why do so few send mail?

I can't count how many times someone older and wiser than me has explained the importance of a handwritten letter. I bet most of us experienced this from our parents, after graduation and birthday parties and times when you had things to thank people for, but we never really listened. 

You might not be receiving gifts and envelopes of money anymore, but why on earth should that mean you have no reason to write a letter? It's the perfect way to talk to your super busy un-reachable friend who now lives in California, or to ask a distant relative for something awkward (like donating to one of your various campaigns.)

It can say, "I care about you enough to write to you," or it can save you from an uncomfortable phone call. It's a win-win, and people love it.

You hear a lot about doing something to make yourself stand out, and now I'm giving you a tip. WRITE LETTERS. More tips:

• You don't want to sound cheesy, so no "Dearly beloved" here, but "Dear _____" does just the trick. I've gotten some letters where people try to get real fancy and it gets weird. (Greetings? Salutations? No.)
• When signing off, it's the same deal. There's nothing wrong with a little "Sincerely," or "Best," but switch it up if you can. If applicable, throw in a little "With gratitude," or "With appreciation." (If you're writing a love letter, I recommend "Always.")
• Stationary is important, but you really don't need it personalized or fancy and expensive. I once booked an appointment at Papyrus to order special personalized stationary and I hate myself to this day for that. Target has surprisingly nice stuff, and Bull's Head Bookshop has a nice selection too!
• The personal detail is KEY. Whether you say "your chocolate chip cookies were incredibly chewy," or "I have known you for x years and your (personality aspect) has (impacted me in some way)," make it personal, even if it feels a little weird. 
• If you're going to write a letter that literally says "thank you for blah blah blah it means so much to me," then you are getting the wrong idea. Don't write what you think you should say. If you're going to continuously tell someone they mean a lot and you are really grateful for them, you should have a reason as to why.
• The most important aspect of writing letters is to MAIL THEM. I have 2 letters in my book bag that have been sitting there for a month, so I'm not the best role model. If I could give myself a tip, it would be to walk out my door with letters in hand or set my phone to alert me when I'm near the post office in Student Stores.

If you're still doubtful, get this: Thanks to my mom staring me down for two hours, I wrote some fire thank you cards after my graduation celebration. They had personal details, adoring words, a certain "Je ne sais quoi," and it worked. I got letters, emails, and texts about how much people loved my thank you cards. A family friend actually came up to me and said "I heard about your fabulous thank you notes!" which was awkward. I couldn't make this stuff up.