Before the Dear,                                                  before the date,

a letter is nothing more than a receptive, yet vacant, page; nothing
there except intention and will to communicate.

All those thoughts, where you were, what you sought, a point
of view, daily news, perhaps of no consequence to someone who
was not there, and that may be the whole point of a letter.

Handwriting, immediate, as it was, scratches steadily across the
paper. An occasional pause, yet the mind flows freely. Topics 
appear out of nowhere; the weather, where you are, how is it there?

Of course you write, of course you care, you tell it like it is, you’ve
got something more to say, and no better way to say it than a letter.

Your Truly
j.g. lewis

Do you write letters, collect stamps, and maintain a relationship with a penpal across the globe?
I do. Monthly-ish letters from a gentleman across the waters, over the past couple of years, have broadened my perspective and enriched my personal life.
We are looking to form a small, yet effective, letter-writing group with an international flavour. There are two of us, right now, but we are looking for a few more dedicated souls who will, with some regularity, share words and thoughts, memories, and a little bit of themselves.
I tried setting this up a number of years ago but, perhaps because of the number of people who were first involved, the exercise dissipated to what it is now: two guys sharing life stories from the other side of the globe.
Both of us believe it could be more. We envision five or seven people responding or replying, writing among ourselves, and sharing a connection that surpasses the theme-like groups you find of Facebook.
This will be unlike electronic communication. Letter writing takes time. There is always a wait for the postal service (some countries are swifter than others) but when a personally addressed enveloped arrives in your mailbox you get a feeling that simply cannot be matched by an email or text message.
We have no real expectations of the group (other than a bit of commitment), but seek writers who will respond, by hand, to letters they receive. We intend to let this unfold as it may, and hope it will take on a life of its own. We hope to begin group activity in the fall.
This will be a non-judgmental group where courtesy is respected and respect is expected.
If this interests you, send a few sentences telling us why you think you would be a good fit to soultalk@mythosandmarginalia.com
This initial email will be the only “electronic” communication we anticipate being required in getting this group off the ground.