Catching up on my correspondence

I <3 snail mail

Dearest friends & family & supporters,

I must begin with a big thank you to everyone for all the lovely cards and messages you send me!!! Truly nothing makes my day like receiving your handwritten cards in the mail, filled with the most thoughtful and kind words. I know, I hate that a blanket thank-you statement can’t capture everything I want to say to each person. I’m working on that, and so I’ve added ‘correspondence’ to my to-do-when-I-have-a-burst-of-energy list.

Tasking myself with letter writing makes me feel like a Meg Ryan character from one of my favorite rom-coms. For weeks now, I’d go about my day and I’d think ‘Oh, I should work on my correspondence!’ I have postcards, pens, and envelopes scattered on my desk. I ordered a few pages of stamps from USPS.com (the last time I went to my post office they were out of stamps?? isn’t that their main job??). I previously only bought one-offs when I needed a stamp but I’m committed now. I have all the ingredients to hone my practice.

A batch ready to drop in the mailbox.

Beyond my desire to reciprocate the gesture, the cards and letters have come to mean something more. You should know I save every one I receive. First, they sit on display, on the side table or kitchen table for a week or so. Eventually, in a decluttering spell, I’ll tuck them away in the shoe box. An old box I decorated with a collage of images of nature and inspiring quotes (another hobby I picked up to keep my hands busy back when I was anxiously awaiting a diagnosis & all the doctors would say is ‘try to distract yourself’).

I’ve saved the notes from every flower arrangement, the drawings from every cousin, the cheers from old college teammates. I’ve saved them all. They live in this box. Every time I glance at it, I feel a burst of love and hope in my heart. Every time I open it, I’m in awe of how full it is and therefore how full my life is. Constant reminders of the steadfast support from so many kind and generous people.

Said box, nestled between puzzles & Rummikub

I got the idea from my uncle when he told me he kept a box of cards and letters from 1985 that he still looks back on to this day. I’ve since learned this is also a common and cherished practice in the cancer community. I imagine it can be a very grounding tool in survivorship, and I dream of rereading the box’s contents in the future.

Thank you again to all who have contributed to my new collection. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you thinking of me & praying for me so often. It’s my goal to send more snail mail in return, but, alas, the ongoing cycle of treatment & recovery has a tendency to disrupt my ideal timelines. In the time it took me to pen a handful of postcards from Chile, my head regrew a full covering of hair and my surgical incision has almost completely healed over.

1 week post-op vs. 3 weeks post-op

Talk to you soon.

Sincerely yours,

Meg