Don't Forget the Cards!

USPS cards

As I mentioned back on April 1, the U.S. Postal Service officially named April as National Card and Letter Writing Month back in 2001. Many of us shorten that to simply Letter Writing Month, but we really shouldn't forget the cards!

According to a 2016 report by the Greeting Card Association, Americans buy about 6.5 billion greeting cards each year. Yep, that "billion," with a "b."

I know many letter writers think of greeting cards as less personal than a handwritten letter, but it's important to remember that the two aren't mutually exclusive. Just because you send a card doesn't mean you can't also write a letter. And, just because you enjoy writing letters doesn't mean you can't fold it up and put it in a pretty (or funny or touching or ironic...) card.

There are so many different types of cards nowadays and in such a wide price range. If you're budget-minded, check out the dollar stores. They often have nice cards for 50 cents or less. On the other hand, you can buy a customized greeting card for $35 on Etsy. And, of course, there are many, many cards at every price in between.

Maybe you can even buy greeting cards at your local post office. There's a rack of cards at my post office! And, there are some cards -- both notecards and greeting cards -- on the USPS website.

One of the great things about cards is that they often have professionally written verse, so if you can't think of the perfect thing to say, you don't have to worry about it -- someone else thought of it for you!

So, when you're writing letters this month, don't forget the cards!