"The art of general letter-writing in the present day is shrinking until the letter threatens to become a telegram, a telephone message, a post-card."
Emily Post, Etiquette Chapter 28
I find this quote by Emily Post to be so thought provoking; it shows she had an uncanny understanding of where social standards were headed, plus it proves that her advice is timeless! It is almost as if she knew we would be in a world of IMs, tweets and texts.
I am intrigued with the fact that we have struggled with communication and making connections from the dawn of time. If you look at the bible, much of the New Testament is compiled of loving letters written by the Apostle Paul to individuals and groups he cares deeply for. It is mentioned numerous times that God wants us to be in fellowship with him and one another. It is clear that letter writing was - at one point in time - a large part of being in a close, caring relationship.
This brings me to today, and my thoughts as I read Emily Post's comments on the art of letter writing. Does anyone write letters anymore? It seems to me as though we have put our entire lives on a screen. Many of us use text and email as our primary mode of communication. I have to admit, I fall into that category. In my desire to do things better, faster, stronger and with more ease I have done an excellent job of distancing myself from many of the people I have considered close friends. Sending a text is a way to get a quick response without engaging the recipient directly. Email is similar; quick, down and dirty writing with little heart or soul. Even greeting cards have joined the electronic age; "Send a card right from your computer, no writing necessary, comes with a real stamp!" Rarely does it cross my mind to take pen to paper and spend the time to WRITE a letter.
Emily Post goes so far as to say that "mental effort is one thing that the younger generation of the “smart world” seems to consider it unreasonable to ask... so they let their mental faculties relax, slump and atrophy." Harsh words, but I find myself tending to agree, at least in my own case. Writing a letter seems like too much of an effort, and if the person I am sending it to is anything like myself, they would find reading something longer than a paragraph tedious and exhausting. (What have we come to?)
Hmmm. What would Emily Post have to say about this dilemma? I think she might say we have to learn to write better... I'll fill you in on more of her pearls of writing wisdom next week!
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