FOR the next few articles, I shall be writing letters to people. I miss writing letters; I guess most of us in the pre-internet era do. Writing letters was an art before email came along. Nowadays, we no longer ask addresses but merely email adds. Writing letters is now a lost art and too bad, it has become that because letter writing is an art form.
It used to be that you bought stationery and it took you some time to do so because of the variety and the occasion. An ordinary stationery would not do; it had to be special to the event.
It really did not matter what it was, you just had to find the right one. In my day, stationeries were popular (In case some of you do not know what stationeries are, they are simply paper with decorations. These you use for writing. They can be inexpensive or they can cost a bundle).
When you found the right paper, you hold it carefully making sure not to fold or crease it. The paper usually came in with a plastic wrapper. When you reach home or wherever you may want to write, you unfold the wrapper and admire the texture of the stationery. If you wanted, you could even smell it but that would be going too far. You touch the almost silky paper and you start saying, "sayang naman kung sulatan." But that is what it is for.
Some people even had a special pen for writing. A pen just made for stationery writing. And when you start writing you do so deliberately and surely but with much anticipation. Back then when we would write we would use our hands. Our letters before were handwritten. It was okay if you had good penmanship but if you did not, well you had to print them and not use "pinakatay." And when you have written all that you intended to, you would sign your name lovingly. You would read the letter again. And again. Hoping there would be no mistakes.
Then you would fold the paper and insert it the envelope. Then you would write the name of the person in front. And off it would go.
Today, it's no longer. Today, you only have to go the net and write your letter or note or whatever. Or you could use Facebook to send a message. Letters no longer are of use with all the technology available and that is a shame really. Technology seems cold and impersonal.
Distant and steely. A letter is totally different. It is warm, personal and humane.
A letter says, hey I care for you. I sense your pain. I celebrate your joys. A crying icon is no match to a letter that sheds tears. A smiling avatar does not come close to the loving caress of a letter. An email does not have the same effect of a handwritten letter.
When I think of it, it has been ages since I used my hands to write anything. The last time I tried using my hands to write I did not last long because my hands started to hurt. Apparently, my hands are now used to pounding the keyboard of a laptop or a pc.
I wonder what would happen if I went back to teaching and started using the board and chalk.
But wait, do they still use the board and chalk nowadays. A lot of teachers bring their laptops along and connect them to an LCD and teach via Powerpoint. And to emphasize a point they would use the laser pointer in their clicker. And I have been told that some if not most students no longer bring notebooks to take down notes. They merely take pictures of the presentation via their phones. I actually observed this when I was giving a seminar some time ago. The participants just took pictures. Times indeed have changed.
And that is why I will be writing letters.