Wednesday, August 31, 2011

in the midst of a storm . . . a revolution was brewing

When a hurricane's a-comin' . . .   
The weather is changing.  Thank goodness.  Cooler temperatures, I am hoping, are not too far away in our near future.  Hurricane Irene has come and gone and I am grateful that we were not caught in yet another natural disaster here at home.  That being said, my heart goes out to those who are still being challenged by the effects of this storm.  The winds were terrible, ripping branches off the pecan trees in our yard, but we were very fortunate.  It could have easily been much worse.  While cooped up in our home, as the storm raged on outside, I decided that it was a good time to bring out the craft supplies and make a few cards.  Recently, I had gone through the rest of the contents in my great-Grandmother's trunk, in it I found yet more photographs, some of them actual tintypes, and a few old letters.  These small treasures inspired me.  In this age of instant messaging, instant cereal, instant everything, just like analogue film, there is something magical about real mail.  Many of my friends have said that it would be rather exciting to receive something in the post other than bills.  Tell me about it.  So, I am starting a Return to Real Mail Revolution!
 

I used to write letters all the time.  To this day, I still have letters from my childhood best friend that I found when  I went through things I still had stored in my Grandpa's attic.  The envelopes were either decorated with drawings or made as collage pieces.  I remember that it was like Christmas time whenever I'd find a new letter in the mailbox.  And the moment I'd finish reading  the latest news about her life, I'd quickly grab an envelope and some paper because now, it was my turn to create.  It was as if we were playing some type of postal tag game and I think that that's what made it so much fun.  The creativity.  The anticipation.  The arrival!  It verifies the saying, Good things come to those who wait

 
 And so, I am getting reacquainted with decoupage glue, paper, scissors, oil pastels, postage stamps, my address book and the wonderful folks at my local post office!  Have a wonderful week friends!