Sealed With A French Kiss

Letter writing is the only device for combining solitude with good company.  -Lord Byron

This painting continues the theme of a young woman with her tongue protruding from her mouth.  In this case the tongue is there to seal a letter.  In our present age their has been a lot of talk regarding the sad obsolescence of letter writing in a world of texting and email messaging.  Though digital communication is tremendously efficient, it will never have the sensual and emotional impact of a hand written letter sealed with a kiss.

What this means is that the letter now has more potential than ever to cut through to the heart of a person. In our day the letter has this special ability because it has become much more rare and things that are rare are simply more valuable and more powerful.  It just may be that a well written personal letter is now a more potent way to communicate than it ever was in the past.

Write A Letter To Slow Life Down

Letter writing is the only device for combining solitude with good company. -Lord Byron

I reach out to my readers today and ask you to consider sending a letter. If not to me, someone who would like to hear from you beyond a phone call, deeper than an email. 

I would love to have something from you in the mail as well as the opprotunity to write back.

Rick Beerhorst

106 Fuller Ave SE

Grand Rapids, MI

49506    USA

Woven Into Relationship

Sending The Letter available here

The desire to connect is so strong within us.  There was a time before email, telephones and telegraphs, when writing a letter was the only way to keep connected with a loved one who was far away.  You may have had to wait weeks or even months for your letter to arrive at its destination let alone to have your loved ones reply.  We are so far from that now - and yet the hunger to keep relationships alive and communication open remains a challenge.

Sometimes I feel like we are just bumping into each other, unable to share our true selves.  Whether it is our lack of courage or lack of language - I am not sure.  Perhaps we are not fully awake to who we are ourselves, so we are not able to share in a clearer way with each other.  Perhaps sitting down to write a letter is a ritual that could be worked back into our lives.  Maybe taking time to do this simple act could bring new life to some of the key relationships in our lives that have begun to slip into forgetfulness.

Treat yourself to a great way to keep in touch with the ones you love.

Writing Letters

"Pen pal" 8"x10" oil painting on wooden panel 2008

In a time of the instant message what becomes of the letter? What role does it have if any?

I have gone through different periods of time in my life where I have made a commitment to writing letters as a way to reach out and stay connected.  I never received as many letters in proportion to what I sent out but what letters and post cards I did get where always a very welcome surprise in my day.  In writing this post I am stepping up to a new season of old school letter writing and I invite you to consider doing the same.

When our family was living our year away from Michigan in Brooklyn New York I got to where I was writing a letter almost every day. It became a way for me to share some of the overwhelmingly rich experiences I was having living in a very large city. That year everything was new and exotic to me. I can't help but think that the discipline of writing those letters regularly may have helped me not only stay connected with friends but also helped me tune into where I was living.

I a time when vinyl has been thoroughly rediscovered by a generation who grew up with only cds and down loads, it makes sense that the  physicality of holding an actual letter in your hand would come to have increased significance.

In case you may like to send a letter my way, my address is 106 Fuller Ave SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49506