Keeping Those Cards And Letters Coming

Excuse me for a moment while I step back into the social medium…

Of 1972:

Or 1952:

or 1922:

If it’s those Advent days between Thanksgiving and Christmas?

The chances are good that I’m working on my holiday cards.

To send out to loved ones near and far, past and present. The closer we get to December 25, the likelier I’ll have seasonal music in the background. (Right now, the room is quiet – I’m not quite there yet.)

My relationship with holiday cards and letters has shifted throughout my adulthood. There was a time as a thirtysomething where my eyes would roll whenever I got a card including a detailed letter of a friend’s accomplishments – with a brief acknowledgment at the end of our friendship, and well wishes for the year ahead.

Now? I’m grateful whenever I see such a letter.

In these days of Facebook and Twitter and Tik-Tok and (fill in the blank with the latest medium), the expectation that all of us have kept up with the latest from everyone means that there are very few update letters any more.

Heck, even the receipt of a card itself is a wonderful reminder that someone is still out there and still cares enough about our relationship to check in.

Each year is an opportunity for me to begin with gratitude.

As I review the holiday card list, I take a moment to remember the person whose name lies before me and think about the moments that readily come to mind when I see that name.

Sometimes, with a lump in my throat, I delete the name of a loved one who passed away between last holiday season and now. Occasionally, I’m excited to add the name and address of a new friend in our lives – or, just as exciting, an old friend who has reconnected.

This year’s holiday card list has about 180 names. Some are linked by blood – my brother, sister, mom and loads of cousins from both sides of the family tree.

But most are family by choice, the accumulation of decades of relationships from schools, newsrooms, church communities, neighborhoods, bowling teams, LGBT social groups and the like.

Some years, I’ve written my own insert letters. A couple of years ago during the height of the pandemic I waxed philosophical in a “20 things we’re grateful for” format. Many years, I include a picture of Tom and me and one of the cats.

This year, I’ve gone back to basics with a brief handwritten note and our signatures. My focus this year is being timelier and simpler. So, each night starting Nov. 29, I’ve sat down and written out 10 cards. Even with my limited math skills, I figure I can get the cards to my friends’ homes before or during their respective holidays.

Then, it’s wait and wonder time. Wait to see whose gifts of relationship we receive (we’ve gotten one so far – it’s still early), and wonder what kind of cards I’ll be picking up at the sales the week between Christmas and New Year’s.

The cycle begins anew.

(A note of invitation: Respecting this site’s privacy policy, if you would like to be on my holiday cards list, you can either private message me on Messenger or feel free to email me at cssherburg@gmail.com.)

Warm wishes this season to you and all you love. 

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