I’ve always felt fortunate that I have relatives and friends who live in different parts of the world.  I have aunts, uncles and cousins in Australia, a grandfather, cousin and friends in England, and a dad and friends in South Africa.  With Facebook, email and even texting, it’s so easy to keep in touch (no exactly like seeing each other in person) but the time delay is seconds versus days or weeks when we mailed letters.

On our last trip to see my grandpa, my mom and I found letters that she wrote to her mom and dad when my brothers and I were toddlers.  There were only a few, but they gave us a glimpse of what was going on in our lives at that time and they were hysterical.  My mom used airmail letters and would often send several in a row because she needed more space to wrote.  The first letter would say “1 of 3”, the second “2 of 3” and the third “3 of 3”.  Even though she mailed them on the same day, that was no guarantee that they’d all arrive in that order.  While writing an email should take thought before the sender hits return, these letters required time, thought and an element of commitment.  I know my grandparents cherished them because in those days, phone calls were pricey and only used in emergencies.

I was thinking about all of this when I came across a blog post by Mel from OneCraftyMumma.com.  She’s a gal from Australia who blogs about crafts, family and fun.  She’s also a firm believer in snail mail and sharing her creativity with others through letters.  I read her blog every day and the day came when she announced that we could sign up for her next Creative Pen Pal Swap.  So sign up I did.  You’re asked to list your top three favorite creative interests (it was a challenge picking only three ;-)) and generally where you’d like your pen pal to live (own country, overseas, or don’t care).

Within 24 hours I had an email waiting for me with the name and address of my Creative Pen Pal.  Her name is Sarah and she’s from Australia.  We’re discouraged from emailing (for obvious reasons), except for the first contact.  Sarah emailed me a couple of hours later saying that she’d be happy to send the first letter.  I must say I’ve been checking the mailbox every day even though I know it will take a bit to arrive from Australia.  We’re not required to mail anything craft-related, but I’ve already been stockpiling some ideas of what I’d like to send Sarah.  This should be fun.

Item #14.  Learn how to make paper.

I have always wanted to learn how to make paper.  Since Pinterest came on the scene, I’ve pinned countless tutorials on paper making.  And with my new Pen Pal, I’m going to put this DIY paper to good use.

Have you ever had a pen pal?

Are you going to tell Sarah about us?  I think it’s fair to say that we’re MAJOR contributors to your creativeness.