Monday Musings
Pretty and Practical?
Today I had a bit of a play with a new toy. I ordered some spindles a while back from my friend Claire and, on a whim, ordered a Nostepinne to match my spindle. I used it today for the first time and immediately noticed all those positives, such as perfect balance and lovely finish, which I had also admired in the spindle when I first picked it up.
These tools are hand made by Claire and her husband and the attention to detail makes them not only a practical tool but a work of art. And I like my tools pretty.
At a pinch I could probably use a cardboard tube as a Nostepinne (it's not tapered though which is kind of important) and I have often wound centre-pull balls on a pair of ice-cream sticks or folded card. But I firmly believe that a tool does not have to lose its practicality just because it has been made aesthetically pleasing as well.
I knit, spin and crochet because I love to work with my hands and I like to create, and look at, beautiful things. The tools we use can be a pleasure in themselves and add to the overall enjoyment of the creative pastime.
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* Claire's spindles are
hereLabels: Monday Musings, Weekends are for spinning
Monday Musings
I am a ... ?Somewhere in the last couple of weeks I experienced a subtle shift. I'm not sure when it happened but I'm pretty sure that I am not quite the same person I was a month ago. Right up until last week, if anyone asked me my profession I would reply "primary school teacher" even though I am teaching at the moment about 2 days a month and have not been secretive about my current animosity towards anything under 4 1/2 feet tall.
I knew that at some point I would be able to reply "I'm a writer" but the hard bit is figuring out when. School-teaching has faded into the background and I have articles sitting on editors' desks but I am still not quite ready to make the change.
What makes a writer a writer? Lots of people read my blog (I can see you, I have a site counter) but I feel that's not really quite it. Of the solicited articles I have delivered, none are yet in print and I think that is what I am waiting on. When I see my name in print, right there on the page in a magazine (and incidentally, when I have a cheque in the bank) then I will be a writer. And the world will be my mollusc.
In the meantime, what am I? If it amuses you, leave a comment suggesting how I should answer the question "What do you do?" during my interim period of uncertainty.
Ciao :-)
Last week's Monday MusingsLabels: Monday Musings
Monday Musings
On Muses
Last night my muse hit me. Right between the eyes. I tossed and turned for hours as ideas flooded my brain and I tried to decide whether it was worth going in search of pen and paper (I've always been of the 'I’m sure I'll remember this in the morning' club).
It's funny how you don't really choose when inspiration is going to come to you. Perhaps it was the result of a bit of successful spinning or the patchy sunshine we’ve had over the last few days. Whatever it was, by 2am I'd decided that no way was I going to call in for daily supply today. Apart from the obvious draw-backs of the lack of sleep, there is an inherant risk when coming in contact with young children in the classroom that all inspirational thought will be firmly squashed and beaten by the end of the day.
So here I am at home actually writing a book. Who would have thought it.
One day I’ll be a famous author and will never have to go supply teaching again :-)
Ciao, Diane
Last week's Monday MusingsLabels: Monday Musings
Monday Musings
Lesson One: Following a PatternLast week I knitted
Fetching. Kind of. As I picked up my needles I thought "Good - a well written pattern, I can knit from beginning to end without any maths, adjustments or in fact, thinking.
As I cast on I caught myself thinking: I wonder if this would work with an Italian cast-on...
As I knitted the cuff I caught myself thinking: I don't really like my mitts long - maybe I'll stop at 12 rows...
Having reached the thumb I caught myself thinking: I really do prefer gusset-increase to an afterthought thumb...
And I left off the picot edging.
I can read a pattern, I can even write a pretty fair pattern. But somehow, I can't bring myself to
follow a written pattern word for word, beginning to end. As soon as I start I find myself tweaking here and adjusting there. Four rows more, two stitches less, in the round rather than flat, toe-up instead of cuff-down. I think this is why I spend rather more of my time thinking about knitting, and frogging my knitting rather than actually knitting.
Somewhere out there is a pattern which I will follow stitch for stitch. In the meantime, I keep my notebook handy and spend much time examining socks - trying to figure out what I did to the first one so I can attempt to knit a second which matches.
Ciao :-)
Last week's Monday MusingsLabels: Monday Musings
Monday Musings
A Barrel 'o Fun with EntrelacWell, the challenge has come to an end. Congratulations to all those who took the plunge - as I discovered, three weeks is actually a pretty short time to squeeze in some new learning along with all the Christmas knitting, shopping and wine-guzzling :-)
I did manage to knit my (very) small sample of entrelac though, applause please!
Thoughts on entrelac:
- It definitely looks better in self-patterning yarn, though I found I needed longer colour repeats than this yarn gave me (LL sock in 'child's play').
- I found the instructions a little confusing, but I think that was the fault of the instructions rather than entrelac per se. For a start they didn't include abbreviations and there were terms I had not come across so I had to guess. They were also a big fan of the 'repeat for remainder of rectangles' when actually the instructions didn't quite carry.
- I have become quite proficient at knitting backwards. NO way was I going to turn around for all those little rows (eew!) Do you turn? Or knit backwards? I generally knit backwards on edgings too if they are not too wide.
- Having sworn never to do entrelac, and broken that vow for the challenge, and sworn I would never do it again, I can't let it go. I am not at all happy with this swatch, the squares are wonky and for some reason there is a multiple of five at the end instead of six (yes that's what the pattern said but they didn't explain why). I can't leave it there so one day I will pick it up, find some better instructions (perhaps
a la mum) and get it sorted before finally laying entrelac to rest.
So, the challenge.
Seven people took up the challenge with lace being a bit of a theme!
Hannah was the first to check in with her sample which you can admire
here, she is making the lace scarf from the DB silk book.
Heather was going to try some lace but has been fighting
bushfires for the past three weeks so I will let her off.
Michelle, Cazzie, Bronte, Cherie and Jacqui are still to check in - can't wait to see what you made!
Stay tuned for the next challenge, and remember, there's
no such thing as "I could never...."
Ciao! Diane
Last week's Monday MusingsLabels: Monday Musings
Monday Musings
A Challenge Last week a customer was lured into the shop by the
Feza scarf sample we had in the window. After I explained that it wasn't for sale and, no, we didn't knit to order for customers, I suggested she might knit one herself: "It's really easy, just garter stitch"
"Oh no, I could never knit"
I didn't know whether to fall over or cry.
Today I chatted to a teacher aide who spends every Tuesday afternoon (successfully) teaching year one children to knit. And here was a fully-grown, intelligent-looking woman completely writing off knitting. I could NEVER knit. I could never KNIT.
Maybe she really meant "I am perfectly happy in my bubble and don't need to learn anything new." Okay, perhaps that's a bit mean - maybe she's really busy, but NEVER????
I consider myself now a pretty competent knitter. Luckily, I learnt at a very young age from a highly skilled
mother.
BUT
A little over a year ago I had never knit socks.
Six months ago I was too scared to try lace.
Two months ago I had never done a heel flap.
Two weeks ago I couldn't knit continental style.
At the moment I am learning how to two-colour strand. Because I need to learn new things. I couldn't imagine not learning anything new after leaving school. Wouldn't it get really
really boring? And how would I ever reach the point where I can design my own traditional Fair-Isle Norwegian sweater with steeks and tubular cast-ons and a cool pewter clasp? (Really I just want it for the pewter clasps)
So I am issuing a challenge. To all you readers who haven't tried anything new for a while: Take the plunge. It only has to be a swatch, or maybe a sock, or cables on a beanie. Branch out and get inspired by something you've always meant to try and never got around to. Leave a comment with your plans and in three weeks we will regroup and you can let us all know how it went :-)
I will be doing this too. I solemnly promise, sometime in the next three weeks I will try ....
Can you guess - my Achilles' heel! A small prize for the first person to post the answer in comments (Mum you don't count and no spilling the beans either!)
C-Day is Dec 18th 'C' for celebration, or maybe confessions ;-) send me a piccie and I'll post it here.
Have Fun!
Last week's Monday MusingsLabels: Monday Musings
Monday Musings
A Love Affair Think of lace.
Of shimmering, silken lace.
Of silken lace with the sparkle of tiny crystal beads.
Just recently, I have fallen in love with lace. A consuming passion which devours my time as I discover new patterns, new swatches, new yarns. I spend countless hours online, reading blogs and tutorials. Gazing at galleries of finished shawls and hungrily watching auctions of coned cobweb-weight cashmere on ebay. I dream of winding around myself a gauzy, floating wrap and imagine tracing with my fingers the trailing vines and intricate patterns of a crisply blocked stole.
I have set myself a limit. One lace project at a time. One shawl, or stole, one pattern. And yet that doesn't stop me in my feverish creativity. Planning, scribbling ideas, buying books, lying awake at night thinking about this new love of mine. Next time, with that yarn from my stash, with that laceweight I am tracking on ebay, with that new design, I will make lace.
But this shawl is to be finished first. As I thread beads I visualise the final article. The luxuriant drape of the silk, the elusive sparkle of just a few pale beads, that wonderous moment when the shawl is blocked and the pattern revealed for the first time. This is a project I know I will enjoy from beginning to end. From the first few stitches cast on to the glory of blocking and finally, hopefully, the look of pleasure in the recipient's eyes as it is unwrapped from its tissue bindings.
Last week's Monday MusingsLabels: Monday Musings
Monday Musings
Needles on the Move"That's the first knitting you've done all weekend" said Neil as she drew her sock from its cosy sock bag while they waited at
Gare du Nord. "I knitted on the train from London," "yes but you haven't done any while we've been here"
I have obviously trained him well. To him, it is now perfectly natural that I will pull out some knitting any time I can get a quiet seat.
My blog title grew from the prospect of travel around Europe. I had visions of us trekking all over by train, bus and bicycle and saw myself knitting my way around the continent, sock by sock (socks travel best being small and generally pattern-less). This has not been far from the truth so far. I knitted on the train to Cambridge and when we went to Stockport and Chester. I knitted all weekend when we visited rellies and had long conversations about knitting of the past on both sides. I see no reason why my knitting will not follow me on all future trips.
I am not, however, planning to spend all my holidays with my nose stuck to my needles. I can't knit while gazing around - except for the plainest stocking stitch - and I don't see why I would go all the way to Moscow to look at a sock instead of whatever it is you go to Moscow to look at. Perhaps those keen knitters who take several projects and spend all their time tracking down knitting shops have less busy holidays planned. Perhaps they, unlike me,
can knit while climbing the seven hundred stairs of the Eiffel Tower. I did visit one yarn shop in Paris but we were going down that street anyway. Really.
I
will take my knitting all over Europe, and I will probably look on those travel-knitted socks fondly in the future and think "ahhh, that was the train to Milan". But however much it may surprise my well-trained husband, while the camera is in my hand, the knitting will probably be in my suitcase.
Last week's Monday MusingsLabels: Monday Musings
Monday Musings
Was Pythagoras a Knitter?Often during my school years I got strange looks from people as I chatted about my studies "you're majoring in what - maths?!?" It seemed inexplicable to many people that I could be really into the humanities - music, languages, English literature, - with mathematics on the side. Now I am vindicated. Hehe.
I started my first garment design project last week. A shrug with a basic eyelet stitch and lace edging worked afterwards.
*Bows low to all past maths teachers*
Knit a swatch in stocking stitch. Calculate guage. Calculate gauge again in imperial. Repeat for lace pattern. Measure body parts. Find a friend to measure body parts impossible to reach by oneself. Convert to imperial. Divide measurements by gauge. Round up/down. Adjust to fit stitch pattern repeats BUT NOT BY TOO MUCH. Calculate lower back shaping. Knit a bit. Calculate sleeve shaping. Spend ages trying to figure out how to increase 72 stitches evenly over 54 rows - how much is too much anyway???. Make sure pattern is centred. Check measurements in case copious amount of chocolate consumption has affected fit. Knit a bit. Eat more chocolate. Check measurements again.
Sometime I'm going to have to figure out how to fit the lace pattern to the cuff and edging stitch count. Potentially before I have knitted that part of the shrug.
I think I need some more chocolate...
Last week's Monday MusingsLabels: Monday Musings
Monday Musings
Yarn: The New Prozac?
Those who read widely about crafts on the internet through blogs, forums and online magazines will no doubt have noticed the regularly appearing motif of meditation and calm being induced by handcrafts. Ask a knitter or a spinner why they enjoy their chosen hobby and they’ll almost certainly include ‘I find it very relaxing’ on their list.
Last week
megali started a thread on the
AY forum commenting on how knitting often sends her to sleep. Many people replied saying that knitting helped them relax, drowse and even fall sound asleep (not always with optimal results!) When I took up spinning again this year I discovered an amazing sense of fulfilment in the creation of yarn. Working with your hands helps to centre and focus your mind and can have a very therapeutic effect on the body.
One article I read on the subject takes the idea further, claiming that spinning can be like taking Prozac "It transports me to another place. It's a little like Gregorian chant” says one spinner interviewed in Boston. She goes on to say that she believes there was an increase in people spinning after September 11 as people searched for something “comforting and productive to do at home”.
Another knitter, this time from Northern Ireland, claims that her craft helps her in her battle with depression; “It is the only thing that picks me up off the ground”. A young boy from Detroit found that methodical counting and hand manipulations helped him focus on breathing and staying calm during bad asthma attacks.
The more you browse, the more stories are discovered of people who applaud knitting, spinning and other crafts as a means to discovering peace, comfort and calm. Still not convinced? Harvard Professor
Herbert Benson, MD says knitting tops many doctors’ ‘calming activity’ lists. Allowing for the passive release of stray thoughts, knitting resembles a “calming mantra”.
So next time someone comes along with comments about knitting being ‘old-fashioned’, just for ‘grannies’ or ‘far cheaper to buy one in M&S’ give them a lecture on the health benefits of wielding the pointy sticks. Then give them some yarn and needles (or a spindle and fluff) and a five-minute lesson and watch them get hooked themselves on the peace and relaxation that is the gift of handcrafts.
Last week's Monday MusingsLabels: Monday Musings
Monday Musings
You get what you pay for .... and sometimes a lot more!There is always a lot of discussion going around about the value of a good bargain. Is it better to buy cheap? Shop till you drop for that perfect discount (and spend more on petrol in the process) Buy the bargain brand because it's such a great saving? This article isn't really about whether you should buy on the cheap - my thoughts on that can be summed up very briefly: If it's good and on sale, grab it. If it's just cheap, turn around and walk out the door: you will always regret it.
But what about things you don't actually
have to pay for. What are they worth? Are they worth less because there is no fixed price asked? Should you pay what someone else in the same market would ask or give yourself a discount or even a freebie?
About three weeks ago I discovered podcasts and
Cast-On. In the first episode I listened to Brenda mentioned the difficulty of making a fair quid at what she does. Luckily, she is able to apply for grants which cover costs and maybe pay some of her bills. But there is also a donation button - available for those who would like to contribute to the continued efforts of Cast-On.
... Before you click away - I am NOT having a go at people who are unable to donate or choose not to. I just want to explore the idea of how we place a value on something without a price tag. Please hear me out ...
This dilemma made me think a bit of those street performers you see sometimes. You know, the ones with the great unicycle/flaming torches/sword swallowing/houdini tricks. They draw a huge crowd, everyone cheers and says ooooooohhhh then as soon as the hat comes out the crowd melts away like snow in Sydney. I would pay £5 for a magazine and get about the same amount of enjoyment out of it as I do from Cast-On. The last theatre tickets we bought were £7 (which I thought was a bargain).
Should we do a direct comparison and say 'Ok, Cast-On is worth £5 an episode, where's the donation button!' I don't think it's quite that simple. A podcast or street performance does not have the same overheads attached and who knows, the artist in question may prefer to be on the street (so to speak) and poohpooh the idea of a fixed rate.
I think it is important that we recognise and encourage writers and artists who have chosen the alternative route to fame. If that is through a donation then all well and good, but you can show support simply by saying hello or telling a friend. Creativity from street artists, bloggers and podcasters improves our world and gives us access to ideas and entertainment we may never have been able to reach or afford. A bargain, yes, but definitely not cheap.
Ciao, Diane
Last week's Monday MusingsLabels: Monday Musings
Monday Musings
New Beginnings
This time next week we will be in London. It seems like only a short time ago that we first conceived the idea of moving overseas; as I suspected, the months have flown by.
This new step in our life actually dates back in its conception more than 6 years. With the advent of Y2K (remember that?) the UK cried out for IT specialists and we thought – albeit fleetingly – of going along with many other Australians chasing the pound pay-check. Six years on, the pay rates are sufficiently tempting to finally drag us out of our comfort zone.
Comfort zone. That’s the thing isn’t it. I was perfectly happy with my little house in the burbs, my friends and family close by and a cat to keep my toes warm while I knit. I know which streets to avoid in peak hour and which local pizza restaurant delivers the fastest.
These last few weeks have been anything but comfortable. My house is a shambles, my friends are in tears and the cat’s prowling around wondering what the heck is going on. I know London will be fantastic. I remind myself that there will be pizza shops (do they deliver?) and vegemite available. I can even perceive some advantages over Melbourne such as competent public transport.
The key to survival, for me who likes to be comfortable, is to find a new comfort zone. With foundations carefully laid I have friends and family on standby for when I arrive. I have the beginnings of a social life and plans to buy a goldfish (hey we’re only there a year). I will find a new little house and fall in love with London’s streets. I will drink warm beer.
I’ll probably never want to come home.
Labels: Monday Musings
Monday Musings
I'm Sure They KnowWhat is it about animals and cameras? As soon as you point the lens they roll over, poke their tongues out and make funny faces. It's like trying to photograph babies :-D Hooray for digital photography which not only lets you know straight away if your shot is seriously boring or backwards, but also makes it possible for you to take one thousand shots of the same silly penguin if you need to.
Today Margie and I went to the zoo. I have just been through the photos and have decided to post the gallery of 'bum' shots. Every single animal turned its back on us so this is all we get...
I really love this photo though ...
and isn't he cute :-)
Last week's Monday MusingsLabels: Monday Musings
Monday Musings
Too Young? Too Old?Max, one of my grade four boys regularly turns up to our Friday lunchtime knitting club. He enthusiastically pulls out his knitting and inspects it for holes (of which there are many). If his mum has had a bit of spare time over the week it might have grown a bit, otherwise it will look as it did the last time I put the stitches back on the needles for him. In the end I gave up – I taught him finger knitting and he proudly produced a long chain with no mistakes.
Is he too young to learn knitting? Is it a fine motor issue or attention span? I have one 10-year-old who can knit garter stitch perfectly, some who can knit but make mistakes and don’t see them, and many, like Max who desperately want to learn and just can’t seem to manage. I wonder whether I am expecting too much.
I remember my knitting as a child. It had holes: dropped stitches and accidental yarn-overs, it always grew tighter and tighter until I could barely move the stitches on the needles. And I gave up. Although I did a lot of crochet as a teenager, I didn’t knit again until I was in my twenties. One day, I wanted to make something so I picked up some needles and did it. I’m sure if I’d tried to learn as an adult I would have found it more difficult and I am grateful that my mother persisted in teaching me when young.
Which brings me to my question: When is the best time to learn to knit? Young children have enthusiasm but not the ability. Older children have the cognitive development but wouldn’t be seen dead with knitting needles unless perhaps stuck into an exotic hairdo. Adults generally find it more difficult to learn new skills and may have other issues to contend with such as time constraints.
I love it that my grade fours want to knit. I worry though that they will become frustrated and disillusioned if they can’t succeed and the knitting will go on the top shelf for years, perhaps for good. I can only hope to avoid this by being encouraging, celebrating small successes and, if necessary, resorting to finger knitting chains :-)
Last week's Monday MusingsLabels: Monday Musings
Monday Musings (on Tuesday)
“The little tongues of flame flickered continually, making it impossible for one of the persons in the Hall to set the stitches in her embroidery with any accuracy. She replaced the work in a tapestry bag, drawing forth, in its stead, a prosaic piece of knitting.” (The Quiet Gentleman, Georgette Heyer)
As I squint over lacework, readjusting the lamp and waving frantically at the cat when he blocks the light, I often think back to this passage and wonder at a time when much handiwork was completed by candlelight and knitting was considered a low-light occupation.
In the Little House on the Prairie books Laura mentions several times her blind sister Mary knitting (although at one point Laura herself complains of lack of light when working on very fine knitted lace). I assume the work would be plain stocking stitch, but very likely actual stockings at quite a fine gauge. Could I knit an entire garment without ever being able to see to check the work, even assuming someone else did the casting on and fiddly bits? Not a chance!
I can manage about half a row of stocking stitch (knit or purl side) without looking so long as the gauge is nice and even and the yarn is smooth. I have been known to slip stitches off the needle even in lacework without looking. But I would never attempt a complicated pattern in poor light or uncomfortable conditions.
I wonder whether we are perhaps too spoilt for comfort in these modern times. Sight-assisting gadgets such as magnifying lights are common and welcomed by knitters. We like good light, comfortable chairs and possibly a glass of wine and cake on the side! That being said – does it make me a better person if I can knit Shetland Lace in the dark? I doubt it, so pass me that shiraz.
Last week's Monday MusingsLabels: Monday Musings
Monday Musings
This weekend marks the end of the AFL season (well at least for
Carlton who don't have to attend the finals as a reward for being on the BOTTOM of the ladder) and it has been a particularly gruesome one. News reports like
this and
this have abounded all season and lucky is the team which has not accrued a hefty sheaf of medical bills or tribunal appearances.
Closer to home, police cars were called to a local under-17 footy final last weekend as parents and team officials poured onto the field to 'protect' their darling children who were laying in with fists and feet.
Even closer, one of my own grade four students kicked another student in the goolies on Thursday because he 'got angry' during a lunchtime soccer match. He got the primary school equivalent of a red card - two lunchtime detentions. (It's fair to say though, the other kid was being a git.)
With increasing concerns about childhood obesity and low exercise levels (not to mention hosting the Commonwealth games this year), we are continuing to place more and more emphasis on fitness and sport. Higher! Harder! Faster! is the warcry and children's sport is at times beginning to resemble a warzone. We can hardly be surprised at this outcome when they are regularly exposed to questionable behaviour and unsafe play on the part of professional sportsmen.
The question is, do we want to encourage our children to participate in recreation which could get them seriously hurt or in trouble as competition becomes stronger and (some) parents become increasingly insane in their desire to see their child win. What is the balance between too fat and too injured?
I would like to see a shift towards more family-centred exercise. A bike ride on the weekend, a backyard cricket match or totem tennis on the lawn. Active kids are happy kids but we don't want to activate their angry side.
Ciao, Diane
Last week's Monday MusingsLabels: Monday Musings
Monday Musings
This one's dedicated to my mum.
As our departure date draws nearer I am beginning to realise that the absolute worst thing about moving to England won't be the harsh winter, it won't be not having the luxury of a car for a year, it won't be the lack of proper Cadbury chocolate (the English version is bleh).
The absolute worst thing is going to be the separation from my mum.
Mum and I don't always get along perfectly (I'd like to hear of a mother/daughter pair that does!) but we have so much in common and the invisible ties between us are so strong that the distance is going to be very hard to bear. Not only similar in features, mum and I are constantly teased for our uncanny likenesses in mannerisms, tastes in books, food, colours and hobbies. mum taught me every craft imaginable from a young age and these skills are treasured now I am an adult. She also instilled in me a love of books and education. She will tell you that I taught myself everything by watching - but no one can learn by watching if they do not have such a wonderful example to follow.
Our mothers are so important to us in our development and the shaping of our lives and personalities. You only have to look at the number of books, poems, cards and fridge magnets dedicated to mothers and on sale in any gift shop to know that mothers are special to all of us. Last week a colleague of mine received news that her mother had been diagnosed with cancer. It completely broke her up and I realised that I would be the same. I can’t imagine life without my mum, no one to ask for help with knitting/dyeing/spinning/recipes/gardening, no one to compare numbers of ‘proper’ books read from various lists, no one to ring to hear unlimited and totally biased praise of my work.
As I draw nearer to experiencing motherhood myself I look back on my life as a daughter and hope that I can bestow such a wonderful gift on my children as I have received.
Please pop over to my
mum’s blog and say hi, she deserves it!
Last week's Monday MusingsLabels: Monday Musings
Monday Musings
I was going to write about terrorism today. It is the buzz of the moment - on everyone's lips and still warranting a double page spread in the daily paper. But I decided not to add my voice. I'd rather think about something a bit more positive - especially after a foul afternoon doing battle with my assistant principal.
So, today's topic is letters. The old-fashioned pen and paper kind. After a miserable drive home with emotions teetering between wild tears and furious anger, I found a letter from my French pen pal waiting for me and suddenly the sun was shining again.
There's some special quality about a real live letter that doesn't emerge in an email or text message. Something about it that makes my heart jump when I check the mail and one is there. Perhaps it's the foreign stamps invoking a sense of the glamour of world travel. Maybe the happy realisation that something in the mailbox is not a bill, or the special note-paper that my pen pals always take the time to choose.
As a means of keeping in touch and up to date, email is efficient and effective. But it lacks the touch and warmth of a piece of writing which has been sent directly from the hand of someone who cares about you. A real letter can surprise you with enclosures: stickers, treats, photos which can go straight on the mantelpiece rather than entering the print queue. A real letter can be imagined to retain some of the lingering perfume of its country of origin.
I hope that snail-mail post endures through our age of elite technology. Rather than always grasping for the immediate response, the fast news, the instant answer, we can slow down a little and benefit from the joy of anticipation and the reception of a real letter.
Labels: Monday Musings
