Cheng 1

1 November 2014
Handwritten Letters
Opening my mailbox and going through the mail, I finally find one addressed to me from
my boyfriend. As I walk back to my room, I
cannot help but smile really big to the point
my muscles in my cheeks hurt due to the
thought of wondering what could be written
inside. I search the drawers of my desk for a
letter opener. Finally, I find it under a pile of
miscellaneous papers and grab it as fast as I can. A thrilled feeling and a rush of excitement
overcome me as the letter opener cut through the envelope revealing the beautiful blue paper.
Looking at the paper I can tell that it has been dyed blue by the person himself. Each page has a
painting at the bottom left corner. While reading each word written in cursive by an inky black
pen, I could picture my boyfriend writing at his desk. The effort and sincerity he put into is very
valuable and special. If it was simply just a text or a message through a social media website, it
would not have been worth as much as it did in the form of a handwritten letter.
Within the past few decades, many new forms of
communication have been developed causing a decline in
handwritten letters. Before the rapid advancement in
technology, it was popular to mail handwritten letters.
Currently, people use social media websites such as
Twitter, Facebook, and Snapchat to get into contact with people. With the improvements of
phones, sending text messages and emails can be done in an instant. Being born in the

Cheng 2
Millennial Generation, I have witnessed these changes. A division of Taylor Nelson Sofres
(TNS) Research Global called TRU, a global leader in researching about youths in their teens to
twenties, conducted a research in March 2011 called Millennial Paper Usage and Attitudes.
They stated that, Millennials are highly engaged with social media: 92% have a social profile
with close to 400 friends, send and receive 92 texts a day and 24 emails. I am also no
exception to this.
To many, the reason why they prefer to use one of the newer ways to get into contact
with others is because its faster than waiting for mail. S., a college student at Cal Poly San Luis
Obispo, says that she doesnt write letters to mail because it is a slower means of communication
and is a hassle to go to the post office and mail it. Other students agreed that it was time
consuming. Today, things are expected to be quick and easy with the new technologies available.
Many have stopped mailing handwritten letters and are now emailing, texting, or social
networking. Rachel Rodriguez, a writer and producer with CNN who writes articles based on the
stories turned in to CNN states that, Snail Mail has been under attack for the past several
decades, with the U.S. Postal Service reporting a drop of 10 billion letters in the past 20 years.
Whenever I drop off the mail in one of the blue mailboxes along the sidewalk, I can hear the
echo of the letter hit the bottom of the empty mailbox. Hearing this sound is disheartening.
Another reason as to why there has been a decline in handwritten letters is because it
takes a lot of time to write one compared to typing one using a computer or text one through a
cell phone. In the book The Millennials: Connecting to Americas Largest Generation, written
by Thom S. Rainer and Jess W. Rainer, American writers and researchers, they stated that, It
appears the time spent for a handwritten form of communication just does not fit within the fastpaced lifestyle of the Millennials (191). Living in this fast paced life, where we have to get

Cheng 3
things done quickly and move on to the next thing, gives us less time to work on things such as
letters. I barely find the time to send letters back to my boyfriend and family. It is very difficult
to do so, but with any chance I get, I put all my effort, sincerity and thoughts I have into it.
Therefore, in this time, it is very special if anyone ever writes one.
Handwritten letters hold a lot of sentimental value especially if its from someone very
important. Getting the handwritten letter is definitely worth the wait. The feeling of waiting to
receive the letter, seeing it finally arrive, and waiting to open it after how far and how much it
went through just to be sent, gives such a pleasant feeling that cannot be matched. Rachel
Rodriguez, a writer and producer with CNN, expressed her thoughts on the feelings and value in
a CNN article titled In E-mail Age, Still Nothing Like A Handwritten Letter, But for all the fancy,
multimedia modes of communication out there, nothing beats the thrill of opening the mailbox
and finding a personal letter, written and addressed just to you. The feeling she speaks of is
unbeatable.
When writing a handwritten letter, it is easier to be more honest with what to say and
expressing feelings. Word choice becomes very important and it helps to become a better writer
(Shanahan). Each time I learn a new vocabulary or a new way of saying something, I am able to
use it instead of constantly repeating myself in my writings. People would be more conscious
about which words they should use and which words would best suit what they are trying to say
(Shanahan). If the right words are used, there will be fewer misunderstandings. My boyfriend
and I had to clear up an issue that we misunderstood about each other. Within out letters, we
wrote about how we both felt and how we both saw the situation. We put it in details with the
right word choices which prevented us from further misunderstandings.

Cheng 4
Christina Vanko, a designer and writer based in Chicago, wrote an article about her
experiment of texting pictures of her handwritten response to her friends for a week. She wanted
to see how people felt as they received handwritten messages. Christina mixed it up a bit by
taking a picture of her response in handwriting on a piece of paper and sending that picture as a
message. She concluded that, Receiving handwritten messages made people special. The
awesome feeling of receiving personalized mail really can be replicated with a handwritten text.
Although the special feeling is replicated, it is not tangible. It cannot be kept and it most likely
will be forgotten as time goes by. The good thing about handwritten letters is that you can keep
it and will be able to look back into them whenever you want. Philip Hensher, an English
novelist, critic, and journalist, stated in his article The Lost Art of the Handwritten Note, that,
The ready communication through electronic means that has replaced the handwritten letter is
wonderful. But we have definitely lost something here, and those Skype, email and text
exchanges wont be treasured in the way that my teenage letters, scribbled journals and postcards
have been for years. Jessica Kleiman, co-author of Be Your Own Best Publicist, in response to
Philip Hensher explained her experience. She said:
I couldnt agree more. Recently, when moving apartments, I unearthed a shoebox full of
handwritten notes from old friends, ex-boyfriends (not sure my husband appreciated that
I hung onto those!) and thank you notes from magazine editors with whom I had worked
for years at Hearst Magazines, including the late, legendary Cosmo editor Helen Gurley
Brown. Had those been sent to me by email or text, I definitely would not still have
them-and they wouldnt have had the same sentimental value. (Kleiman)
Looking back at those letters, we can reminisce those moments of our past that we might have
forgotten.

Cheng 5
I seal the envelope carrying my handwritten letter feeling satisfied and happy. Wonders
of what his reaction would be when he receives it runs through my mind. I stick the stamp on
and hurry to send it off on its long journey to my love. There is not a form of communication as
special as a handwritten letter. Each letter is unique. I cannot imagine what it would be like if
handwritten letters never existed.

Cheng 6
Works Cited:
Hensher, Philip. "The Lost Art of the Handwritten Note." The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones &
Company, 28 Dec. 2012. Web. 28 Oct. 2014.
Kleiman, Jessica. "Why E-Mail Will Never Replace the Handwritten Note." Forbes. Forbes
Magazine, 9 Jan. 2013. Web. 29 Oct. 2014.
"Millennial Paper Usage and Attitudes." Millennial Paper Usage and Attitudes. Cross Media
Innovation Center, Mar. 2011. Web. 29 Oct. 2014.
Rainer, Thom S., and Jess W. Rainer. The Millennials: Connecting to America's Largest
Generation. Nashville, Tenn: B&H Pub. Group, 2011. 191. Print.
Rodriguez, Rachel. "Still Nothing Like A Handwritten Letter." CNN. Cable News Network, 27
May 2010. Web. 28 Oct. 2014.
Shanahan, Courtney. The Importance of Word Choice The Goodwin Group, N.p., N.d. Web.
15 Nov. 2014.
Vanko, Cristina. "I Sent All My Text Messages in Calligraphy for a Week." The Atlantic.
Atlantic Media Company, 26 June 2014. Web. 28 Oct. 2014.