In looking over my January notes (handwritten notes, yes!) I see that National Handwriting Day is coming up ~ it takes place on the 23rd of the month, which also happens to be John Hancock's birthday, he of bold handwriting fame. :)
Now, I've made no secret of my fondness for paper and pen, so perhaps I'm a bit biased when I say I think this article rocks:
"Mom, what was handwriting? A novelist examines what we lose as we abandon cursive for typing."
I came across it in the Sunday Boston Globe, and it really got me thinking (as the length of this post can clearly attest). I enjoyed the article so much in fact, that I've requested the discussed book, The Missing Ink: The Lost Art of Handwriting, from the library, and I'm quite eager to read it ... and, naturally, take notes. :)
I do love the written word however it is delivered - I relish reading and I am an avid (albeit amateur) journalist, in both a personal and public way. I write a (public) blog and I also keep (private) journals. I like to think my "voice" is authentic in both mediums, but there's something extra-special about the words I've written out by hand ...
"There’s nothing nicer than going back over things you’ve written in the past. Those things on paper do take you back to a particular time and a particular place where you were when you were writing this stuff. When I look at my book in print, I can’t remember where I was when I wrote anything. When I come across one of my notebooks, I can remember." ~ Author, Philip Hensher
I write all kinds of stuff in my journals and though they are intensely personal - a "brain dump" if you will, written only for myself - I do think that someday my progeny might get a kick out of what I wrote, and how I wrote it. Maybe these journals will help them know me, and life in my time, in a way they might otherwise not.
Without a doubt our society is heading away from handwriting, so I think it's important that handwriting enthusiasts keep the "art" alive in any way that we can. So I'm resolving this year to write more by hand. Now, I already write a lot for myself, so this would mean more handwritten correspondence - for example, our Christmas cards. Although I do love our cards (Shutterfly is brilliant!), and I truly appreciate the ease with which I can order, assemble and mail said cards come (busy) December - I have vowed that next year I will take the time to write something personal inside each greeting. Whether it be a handwritten signature (rather than the pre-printed variety) or a slip of paper with a brief message of holiday cheer ... it will hopefully be something that forms a deeper connection with our family and friends. Because I think when we write someone a note by hand it links its message back to us in a way that a type-font cannot ...
"Take pleasure in your own handwriting even when it’s scrappy and individual, because that’s the handwriting that your friends and loved ones will take the most pleasure in, because it’s you. Do it every day." ~ Author, Philip Hensher
Recently a friend of mine commented that she treasures anything handwritten by her late father, and it made me think of those little notes I've got stashed away that were written by my grandmother ... little post-it notes in her scratchy blue ink that say "Save for Dawn" or "Show this to Bookworm." Because she was always just that way - putting aside interesting things to share with her children and grandchildren - and great-grandchildren! Gram was a great reader and her family meant more to her than anything else. Anyone who knew her knew these things about her. And yet I particularly love those little notes because for one thing, her handwriting's like mine, (or I guess I should say, mine is like hers) and for another, it helps me remember her in a very personal way. It's a comfort even - it makes me feels like she's not so far away ...
Now, I hope I don't sound preachy - I know that technology appeals to many folks as strongly as pen and paper do to me. And I'll confess, I find myself conflicted at times. Like any (relatively) modern mother I have a lot on my plate and I'm too often pressed for time. So the need to be "quick and efficient" is always present. (Annnd that's a whole other post.) But combine my love for all things handwritten with my general discomfort/inexperience with technology (not to mention my resistance to change) and it's no wonder I stick with my "old school" preferences. I know a lot of people are like me to some degree, and yet many folks just naturally gravitate towards technology.
My husband, for instance, is something of a "technerd," if I may use that term loosely and with a bit of cheek. ;) Bill understands computers, and technology in general, in a way I could never hope to; this has made him more successful in his career, and it brings him enjoyment as well. So it's no surprise he uses his iPhone for everything and then some: schedules, reminders, correspondence, shopping lists, travel plans, etc. ... all things I prefer to write out by hand. But we are equally competent in, and satisfied with, our organizational method. For the most part. :)
So I save some of Bill's emails (the ones of a more intimate nature), in a special "inbox" folder - alongside any links and cute emails the boys send me. Just as I save every card my dear ones have given me in a bedroom drawer. Preferences aside - penned or typed -communication is what's important. Love is love, however it's expressed. ❤
OK, enough of my rambling! Today dear readers, I'm curious ~ how much do you write by hand these days, and what areas of your life have you turned over to technology?
Shopping lists?
Thank you notes?
Casual correspondence?
Holiday cards?
Journaling?
Recipes?
*
And if you homeschool, do you teach your children cursive? Do they practice penmanship in any formal way? And if your kids are in school, did/do they learn cursive at some point?
Please leave a comment below if you have thoughts on the subject, as well as the time to share them! Generations ago - if I were a professional and this was say, a newspaper column - I'd wait for your responses to be mailed in. It's nice that in this setting we can share thoughts immediately - much more does get done with technology, it's hard not to recognize that. It is a changing and ever-progressing world, but like the old saying goes, why throw out the baby with the bathwater?
"We maintain a mixed relationship with food. Sometimes we go out, sometimes we call in for a delivery, and sometimes, like on Christmas Day, we start from scratch preparing food for people that we love. Why can’t handwriting be like that?" ~ Philip Henshaw
P.S. I'm organzing my "correspondence drawer" this weekend - an annual January task - and I will be happy to share it all with you once I'm done. :)
Well my friends, as always, I thank you for stopping by today, and wish you all a happy day!
See you here again sometime soon ...
❤
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