The plan was simple. While discussing the joy of letter writing and the How To Write A Letter Guide, we were going to do mindful activities, or creative ones, with our hands. This was a workshop with the Mindful Making group based in Bridgetown Totnes after all and crafty activities are kind of their cup of tea. So I had no objections to the idea because I too am quite partial to a bit of multitasking!
But it was not to be!
As it turns out, creative discussion, general chat and some easy writing tasks were enough to keep us occupied. “Tasks” seems a bit heavy actually. More like activities but I’ve used that word twice in the first paragraph already so it feels a bit lazy of me to use it again.
But why not use it again?
Do you really care? That’s the sort of writing issue that you might not worry about or notice but to me it stands out like a sore thumb. Maybe you have some thoughts about your writing that stop you from using a pen and paper? The computer has so many built in writing aids it’s easy to lose confidence in our spelling or neatness. It’s easy to Judge our writing abilities. Well, guess what? You don’t need to do that because the person receiving your letter won’t give a hoot. This is about Connection, Authenticity and a Sense of Achievement. It’s not an English Language test!
Embrace Imperfection: No Teachers here
My job is to facilitate the workshop. I don’t control it. A guide here and there, but really, I facilitate by presenting ideas and prompts and the group does the work. The Mindful Making group had lots to say which is brilliant. We talked about rubbish handwriting, not knowing who to send the letter too, and many other topics. But really, what everyone needed that day was the How To Write A Letter Guide.
The art of letter writing has faded from our memories and I can say with all honesty, that a high percentage of the people at the workshop that day were old enough to remember when a stamp was 19p! But some people in the group, and this is a common theme amongst people I chat with, get so bogged down by the details. They haven’t done it for years, can’t spell, hate their writing, not sure who to write too – the list is endless but it’s all just barriers. It’s some annoying voice inside our heads preventing us from doing fun creative stuff.
Why?
That’s a conversation for another day.
Just know that it’s okay to have rubbish handwriting or be crap at spelling. It’s the effort people see. The story you tell whatever way you’re able to that leaves the lasting impact on the person receiving your letter. Not whether you got your, their or there right!
