Is Technology Stealing your Handwriting? Don’t Forget How to Be Personal
From my front door, I watch the mail carrier open my mailbox and slip something inside. I smile. I still like receiving snail mail, even though the odds of it being something good is slim.
I grab the small stack of mail and flip through it. I see today I’ve hit the jackpot: a handwritten envelope with my name on it (even better than an Amazon package?).
I check the return address and don’t recognize it, even though it’s local. I walk inside to open it and see who it’s from.
Technology Is Easier
In this era of mass digital communication, we still value a personal, human touch, maybe more than ever. Receiving a handwritten note can make us feel special, knowing someone on the other side of the note had to intentionally think of us, locate a piece of paper and pen, write a note, put our address on it plus a stamp, and walk to their own mailbox to send it our way.
However, as much as I love receiving these, do I send them? Not often enough. Certainly not as often as I used to. Nowadays it’s much easier to see my friend’s birthday when I’m checking Facebook, type a quick “Happy Birthday, friend!”, add an emoji if we’re close enough for that, and click send.
I don’t have to go to the store, flip through all the birthday cards I do NOT want to buy (you know you’re old if; how about another drink to forget? on and on) to find that perfect card that I do want to buy.
So efficiency for the win, right? But personal relationships? I’m not sure technology is helping our relationships as much as it is dumbing them down (nor is technology helping my eroding penmanship skills).
Set Yourself Up
Perhaps I often overvalue digital because of its immediacy and reach, but it is also easily misinterpreted and can feel impersonal. Handwriting, on the other hand, feels more authentic and unique, but the whole process takes more work and more time.
I’m still looking for the right balance between digital communication and handwritten communication (not to mention the disappearing in-person kind, the gold standard!). Digital and handwritten both have pros and cons, and I don’t want to forsake one for the other.
I don’t need reminders to continue communicating digitally, but perhaps I can create a few nudges for myself to also communicate by hand. A stack of notecards on my desk. A supply of postage stamps. A favorite pen by a pad of post-it notes. It needn’t be extravagant to be personal.
Your Script Is So You
Reminded of handwritten mail I’ve received in the past couple of years, I search for a shoebox tucked under my bed. It’s where I store special notes I want to keep. I reread a sweet birthday card from a longtime friend; a note from a new friend that included a bracelet with my name on it; an anniversary card from an internet friend I’ve never even met in person but who has grown dear to me.
I know each sender before I even see their signature because I recognize their handwriting. All the senders use the same English alphabet to convey their messages, but their personal style of writing is as unique as their content.
I want to continue sending handwritten content also. It’s valuable. It’s intimate. And it’s fading.
Keep Writing One Person at a Time
I finally open the letter from today’s mail. And I am disappointed. It’s not personal after all. It is a mass mailing that used a handwriting font, another piece of junk mail. Marketers are on to us; they use our curiosity for the personal to increase their open rates (supposedly it’s twice as effective).
They may have duped me into opening their mail, even doubling down on technology by including a QR code to lure me in for more information (I didn’t bite).
But I won’t let them buy my humanity. I needed this reminder to lean more into my own handwriting. It’s like no one else’s. Neither is yours.
Of course we’ll continue to write on screens (please!). Keep broadcasting your heartfelt messages online to the world at large. We want to hear them, even if we don’t really know you.
But let’s also use a bit of our valuable time to write individual messages to other real people that we know. One person at a time.
It’s an endearing—and growing more unique—way to connect.
Do you still send handwritten mail? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Read more:
- An Extraordinary Letter in the Mail
- Discovering Life’s Wisdom – 4 Key Takeaways on Being Human
- Can You Tell Me Your Name Again?
- On the Blog—March 2024
- Which of These 3 Conversations Are You Having? Insights from a Doctor’s Office
Like you, Lisa, I do miss the personal touch of handwritten cards and letters. Reading this has inspired me to do more of that in the days to come.
Blessings!
I hope I will do more personal notes in the days to come too, Martha! It’s a little more trouble, but a lot more satisfying.
I agree. Technology has made it possible to be more aware of what’s going on in friend’s lives and send them a note or text quickly and efficiently. But there’s something special about handwritten notes as well. I also hate when junk mail comes disguised as a handwritten note.
I know you’re amazing at handwritten notes because I’ve seen the beautiful cards on your blog that you create for your family and friends! That’s really above and beyond; you are amazing, Barbara.
I am grateful my grandmother and my mother saved special written letters that meant a lot to them. I even have long newsy handwritten letters I wrote to my Mom when I was away on trips or working elsewhere than where she was living. Seeing my own handwriting sharing with another what was important at the time is as exciting as my own journal I kept at that certain time. And like you, Lisa, I have cards with handwritten notes from friends over the years and I treasure them (friends and cards). I have gotten away from sending cards as I once did. When I do, I now will print off one of my photographs and stick it on a blank card and then write a personal note – a bit different than when I stood at a ‘card rack’ in the stores trying to find the just right card. But even saying that, I want to be more intentional in ‘getting to it’.
What a beautiful gift that you can see your own handwriting that you wrote to your mother! I have several things in my mother’s handwriting, and I get all the feels when I run across a recipe or something in her script. I love that you send a photograph with your notes! That’s such a special touch; I’m not surprised by it. You’re so thoughtful, Lynn.
So many thoughts about this, Lisa. I treasure hand-written notes and cards received from loved ones in the past. These days, our family communicates a lot via text and WhatsApp, but I try to send actual letters to the girls every now and then so they’ll get mail at college. What amazes me, though, is how committed to sending notes and cards my older daughter is. It’s like the letter-writing gene skipped right down from my mom to her–it’s lovely to see. Yet another way I need to follow my daughter’s example, I think. As for handwriting, technology didn’t really hurt mine, it was already bad. 🙂 I do think it’s sad that handwriting is going by the wayside (and that they don’t even teach cursive in school anymore.) But I also think a typed letter in the mail is better than no letter in the mail, especially if I want my loved ones to be able to read it!
I am very grateful for all the technological communication options too. They are my bread-and-butter for staying in touch. But yes, those handwritten letters are ones I treasure the most. I’m in a similar boat as you: my mother was great at writing letters, and my Jenna handwrites the sweetest notes, so somehow the gene skipped me, too. Oh well, we do what we can. 🙂
Thank you for this post, Lisa. It’s something that I struggle with. I used to be the one who ALWAYS wrote notes of encouragement and sent them through the mail, but the last few years I’ve gotten further and further away from that. I still “think” about doing it, but eventually I either turn to technology or I don’t send encouragement at all. I appreciate you!
I actually got a boost in this direction from my physical therapist who encouraged me to keep using handwriting so I don’t lose my unique signature! So I DO still send handwritten notes and consider the extra time that it takes to be part of the discipline.
That’s awesome, Michele. And it makes sense. Handwriting is definitely something we have to keep using or we will lose it. I’m glad you have the discipline to keep up with it.
Sometimes I look at my handwriting compared to the handwriting fonts and abandon my handwriting to a typed message! I’m taking on a personal challenge to get over that! What is more prettier than an authentic font written by the movement of a heart-beating specimen? I’m inspired again to send a handwritten card to at least one person per month. Thanks Lisa!
I understand what you’re saying, Lynn! My handwriting has really deteriorated in the past few years. I sometimes have trouble reading it myself. 🙂 But you’re right that authentic handwriting has its own beauty even if it isn’t as legible or “pretty” as a computerized one.
I have such poor handwriting that I appreciate the online cards. I tend to put off the hand-written ones. At least this way they receive a note! The founder of Girl Scouts, Juliette Gordon Lowe, put personal drawings on her notes. That always impressed me.
I’m with you, Debbie, that any card–online or handwritten–is better than none at all. And sometimes if I have to go the extra mile in something, I may or may not do it at all, depending on the situation. 😉 I love the idea of putting personal drawings on notes. But there again, mine would be pretty bad. I just use stickers instead. 🙂
Thank you for the nudge to start sending cards and letters more often – for no reason other than to let people know they were thought of. There is nothing sweeter than seeing something handwritten and immediately knowing who it is from 🙂
Yes, there is something special about identifying people’s handwriting by sight. I hope that won’t totally fade away in years to come; our script is as unique as our fingerprints (and much easier to see!). 🙂
When we moved five years ago, I made a commitment (in my heart) to write to my three older friends from my former community. As all are in their 80s, I have to write large handwritten notes for them to be able to read, but it’s worth the effort. They usually text me to let me know they received it.
That’s a beautiful gift you give your older friends, Lisa! I hope my younger friends will be as generous to me some day. 🙂 You’re inspiring me to think about who in the older generation I can send something to in larger font this week.
This is timely — my son just sent a thank you note and he wanted to type his messy first draft, but I encouraged him to rewrite it, as a handwritten note would be much nicer for the recipient. And it was short enough not to be too much of a chore!
Do I still write handwritten notes or letters, though? I even often send birthday cards electronically these days. You make me think I should reconsider that.
I’m glad you encouraged your son to send his note in his own handwriting! It is more personal and probably much appreciated by the recipient. When I receive something handwritten, I know the writer did take a little extra effort to communicate with me, and it doesn’t go unnoticed.
But like you, I don’t do much of it myself anymore either. I do want to, though!
I do still send handwritten mail on occasion to a few friends we left behind in SD, though I have sent typed out & printed letters from the computer too. It’s convenient & spell checks. I can print a few pictures within the letter too, if I print it out from the computer. I think handwriting will be a lost art in future generations. Keyboarding is taught in school these days to the Grands instead of cursive writing that I grew up learning in elementary school.
I love that we have the option to do both handwritten and typed! I do far more typed communication than handwritten; it’s so versatile (and definitely neater). I remember how exciting it was when I finally reached 3rd grade and got to learn cursive! I hope kids will at least learn how to read it even if they don’t learn how to write it (but I hope they will learn that too).
So beautifully said, and I agree completely! I do still send handwritten birthday cards to family. I think both handwriting and personal communication are falling out of practice, and I think we lose so much when that happens. Visiting from the Crazy Little Love Birds linkup.
That’s great that you still send handwritten birthday cards, Jennifer. I have lapsed into only sending them to my family members who aren’t on Facebook. I hope to be more intentional about still sending some handwritten things even if not as often as I once did.
Funny I got a handwritten note in the mail this week and immediately wondered why. it was so odd to receive one. that is sad. Yes yes to more handwritten notes. such a good practice.
Such a great topic Lisa! I guess I am pretty old school when it comes to handwriting notes and letters. Despite my arthritis, I endeavor to send encouragement by my own hand as often as I can. It feels special and intimate, especially in this digital age!
Handwritten personal cards and letters are special these days. Thank you Lisa for your weekend coffee share.
This is a great topic Lisa and it’s so true. I can’t remember when I last received or sent a personal handwritten message. However I have to tell you that my partner and his siblings still send birthday cards to each other.
I love this encouragement to write notes to people, which I don’t do too often. Funny, I bought a stack of cards to mail out and didn’t mail one.
I will proudly feature this post on my Pinterest board for Grace & Truth Featured Posts. You can see your article here—
https://www.pinterest.com/embracingtheune/grace-truth-christian-link-up-featured-posts/.
I recently received a handwritten card from my husband. It felt so special and made me realize how much I cherish these kinds of notes. My girls often leave me handwritten notes too, and they mean the world to me. Most of the time, my mailbox is filled with generic and mass-produced typed mail, so receiving something personalized is truly a treat. Thank you for sharing this post with us at The Crazy Little Lovebirds link party #32, Lisa.
I always enjoy a handwritten postcard. Once in a while when I have time I do a postcrossing to send a postcard to someone in a different part of the world.
I loved this post…I am working on getting back to sending cards to people and taking time to write out a note. I do still write quite a bit…whether thoughts in a notebook, my weekly menus in a notebook. I like to write those things on paper, and then when I have a plan, I transfer them to my computer calendar.I always have paper handy when I’m listening to a podcast to jot thoughts down. Those mass marketed letters drive me crazy. I do like using handwriting fonts, but come one!!
Hi Lisa, visiting again to let you know that I am featuring your post tomorrow at The Crazy Little Lovebirds link party #33. 🙂
I love sending and receiving letters in the mail, Lisa, but I admit, I send less of them nowadays. I need to change that. My handwriting has definitely deteriorated as a result of typing all the time as well. I am so grateful for your reminder that it is important to keep in touch in a personal way as well as with technology. I’ll be featuring this post at the May edition of Hearth and Soul which goes live this Sunday 5th May. Thank you again for sharing.