Love is in the Air!

February in Wisconsin generally includes snow and cold temperatures. We can’t huddle together quite yet but we can certainly enjoy warm and comforting food and drink while we think of sunlight and warmer times to come. And of course in February we have Valentine’s Day! This holiday seems to invoke either heart filled feelings of adoration, sweetness and love or loneliness, panic and apathy. How do we build relationships in times like these? How do we make the relationships we have even better?

Recently, my mother just retired and moved two and a half hours away from me and my son. She used to live in Racine and now lives farther north in the country town of Wautoma. (where?) It’s a big switch for her as a lot of her family lives in Southeastern Wisconsin so at times I would think it would get a little lonely. I’m sure many people feel a little isolated, especially in winter during a pandemic. How do we reach out in a meaningful way?

So I’d like to bring back the endangered art of letter writing. What could be better than opening the mailbox and finding a pretty envelope instead of a bill! Email, shmemail! Time to get some stationary! Letterwriting is a lost art in these fast paced times. With our modern day culture we trim the beauty and cut the fat with emails, texts, and emojis instead of the expression of vocabulary. In the past, letters were lifelines, cherished and saved in boxes for years. When old letters are discovered we learn about a person’s life, how they lived and loved. Letters have helped us record history. I think that’s amazing!

Writing a letter causes us to slow down and deliberately think. We are allowing ourselves a chance to mindfully reflect and look ahead, taking the TIME to reach out and show someone we think they are special enough to do so. What a gift! A gift that transports a part of us to another person in a beautiful way.

I’d like to encourage everyone to give it a try. With so many wonderful paper and boutique stores to choose from for stationary, you’d also be supporting your local small business in the process. Send a letter to the people you love this February. Send a letter to a business or organization that needs to hear the way they might have positively affected your life. There are so many opportunities to be a part of someone’s history. You never know, in 50 years, someone may pull your old and faded letter from a box too. 

Take Care of Each Other,

Rebecca - General Manager