Snail Mail

Some time back, we were part of this sticker club thing for the kids which was a little bit of a chain where we got an email invitation to send a packet of stickers to a child and then send on the email with your own kid's name in it to 6 kids who would then do the same thing. It was meant to allow our kids to experience receiving mail, in this day and age where for most part, nothing fun comes in the mail anymore.

Recently, I noticed that Jordan and the neighbours, less so Evan because he can't be bothered to write long rambling letters, have started sending letters to each other.

First, we found them in their school bags. They were passing letters to each other during recess. Then we started seeing pieces of paper slipped under our doors. The problem was that the girls would use recycled letters to write to one another and we often thought they were scraps lying around or junk mail and we would toss them out.

After a lot of indignation on their part and a lot of feigned blame on ours ("You shouldn't leave them lying around!"), the girls came up with the idea of making their own mail boxes and sticking it the front doors. That way, the seemingly ignorant mommies wouldn't toss their precious letters into the bin.

Unlike our regular post, this postal service seems to be very active in the evenings and on the weekends. That's probably when the girls see the least of each other. 

It's provided our front doors decoration and it is indeed a cheering sight to come home to a happy envelope on the door. They take it seriously and when they receive a letter, they read it and race off to pen a reply and slip out to drop it off. If only our local mail was so efficient.

It's funny how they implore each other to write and occasionally resort to using emotional blackmail.

We found a letter sometime ago and with permission, I've posted a fragment for posterity here. The rest of the letter was a plea to write to her because she had been grounded by her mother. The mothers routinely take photos of found letters and sent it around amongst us. We have laughed about it though maintaining a straight face and pretending to take the girls and the mail route seriously.

We'll see how long it lasts. I remember doing it when I was a bit older than they were. But because that was also part of the 'collect letter paper' phase of my life, I regretfully used fancy letter paper to write these letters.

Evan, on the other hand, totally enthralled by Potter world, thinks that Owl mail is the way to go and has recently asked for one. On account of there not being an Owl post network and his friends not having owls plus the fact that they poop indiscriminately and leave regurgitated, half eaten rats everywhere, I'm inclined to say no to that one.