USPS, it's all in your hands now.

Posted by Melissa Baumagrt

The real deal.

I was avoiding letter writing because I think contextually it doesn't fit into the life I lead.  Letter writing happens in places like Downton Abbey (Cannot get into that snoozefest.  I know I am alone on this.  Give me more Breaking Bad.) or in a cabin out in the hills covered with wildflowers, sipping herbal tea and living a pure life.  That is definitely not happening here.  Purity explodes away from all those who enter through the Baumgart's door.  It's like the rapture in reverse.
(I never read the bible, forgive me if my attempt at religious humor failed miserably.)

I made it past my preconceived notions on letter writing when a friend asked me to write to her on a facebook post this morning.  She was the perfect candidate for a letter.  I miss chatting with her.  I miss her honesty and humility.  She taught me so much about accepting myself as a mom, craziness and all.  We did a lot of hanging out when our kids were little...commiserating and finding the humorous silver linings in each bad parenting moment.  Actually, she still has little ones...she now has five kids to my three.  Yes, she is crazy.  And I totally LOVE her for it.  It was refreshing to write candidly, and in full sentences sometimes, about life and family.  I spent a lot of the time thinking about all the good times we shared; driving for 15 hours in a car to VT with two kids under one year, the way I was always afraid of her cat, the simple look one mom gives to another when all the kids are crying and you can't do a damn thing about it.

My head was swimming with all those memories, but my hand totally hurt.  About three-quarters of the way through the first page I had to incorporate some hand PT into the sentence rotation.

I have to say, while I enjoyed writing the letter, I still really love texting.  Texting is like hanging out with someone a thousand miles away, and feeling like you're almost right next to each other.