Letter writing is a great way to celebrate the International Day of Words

Today, November 23, is the International Day of Words, an initiative of the Cesar Egido Serrano Foundation of Spain. The organization aims to share the idea of "The word as a link of humanity, and against all forms of violence."

According to the foundation's Facebook page, "On this day, more than ever, words will become the bond of humankind where people with the same ideals of using words and dialogue as a tool for understanding between different cultures and religions will gather."

That sounds like, to me, a great concept to combine with letter writing. Through writing letters, especially with international penpals, we can better understand the people of the world and their various cultures. 

So, if you've been waiting for the right time to start writing more letters, to seek out penpals or to reconnect with people you used to communicate with, today is a great day to put that in motion. Write a letter today and then carry on the spirit of International Day of Words every day with your letter writing. 

Get to know people through correspondence. Share information about your life and your culture. Ask questions about their lives and cultures. Open your mind to new ideas; learn everything you can about the world beyond your mailbox.

Happy International Day of Words, and happy letter writing! 

Holocaust victim's note illustrates the power of a handwritten letter

Vilma Grunwald's letter, from the U.S. Holocaust Museum

Hello fellow letter writers!

It has been months since I have had the time to blog and almost as long since I have had a chance to write letters. I have been working on an extensive project/job that takes up much of my daily time.

Just about every day, I think, "This is the day I'm going to blog again," and, yet, the end of the day comes and I never got around to it. I still love letter writing and follow letter writing news and blogs with great interest.

That's what prompted me to finally find the time to blog today...a news story about a letter. The article is on the Indianapolis Star newspaper's website, www.indystar.com, and was written by Will Higgins.

It is a testimony to the power that a simple letter can hold.

I encourage you to read the article. But, I'll give you a brief overview of the letter and the story: Frank Grunwald was 11 years old when his mother and brother were sent to the gas chamber Auschwitz. As she was about to be killed, Vilma Grunwald scribbled down a few sentences in a letter to her husband. Amazingly, the guard she gave the letter to delivered it to Kurt Grunwald, a fellow concentration camp prisoner.

The letter has survived all of these years and has been donated to the United States Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C. The museum's chief acquisitions curator thinks that it could be the only one of its kind in existence.

The letter is powerful. It is poignant. It is, at once, heartbreaking and inspiring.

The story is something we all need to keep in mind when we think a text or even an email is good enough to get our point across.

Read the story. Then, write a letter.

Sincerely,
Carla