More Love Letters

Say hello to Sarah from Inspiration-Driven Life, a fabulous guest blogger that you are going to LOVE!

When was the last time you received a letter? Not an email, not a text, not a mass mailing, not a magazine or catalog, but a real, handwritten letter, with an authentic signature and with heart and soul behind it.

Can’t remember? It’s okay. Most of us can’t.

But if you can remember . . . didn’t it make you smile? Didn’t it give you that warm, fuzzy, all-is-well feeling? Didn’t it just lift your spirit?

Given the power of a letter, it’s a wonder we don’t do it more often. It’s a wonder I don’t do it more often. And, friends, I don’t need to repeat the headlines; we all know how much our world could use a bit of sunshine these days. The world needs love now more than ever, yes?

We all stumble. We all fall. We all struggle. No, one letter won’t bring us to world peace. But it may bring a bit more peace to one. And so we owe it to ourselves, to our friends, to our communities, to reach out in love whenever we can.

A letter, in its sweetness and its uniqueness, is a tangible reminder of care and thought. It’s a place to say just what we need to share, to spread a special message and joy.

And when it’s on smashing stationery? Even better!

Today, friends, I’d love to make you aware of a growing organization that has captured my attention recently: More Love Letters.

Its mission: “More than just fueling a handwritten practice with social media, we are on a mission to spread more love letters out into a world that so desperately needs them. Through writing, leaving and mailing love letters, we are learning to turn our words into lanterns to light the paths of others.”

Every month, More Love Letters invites anyone interested to pen words of encouragement to one or two special recipients. And furthermore, the organization encourages anonymous love letters to be left all over, for anyone to find and receive.

I’ve been writing love letters to the monthly More Love Letters recipients for the past few months and the exercise has truly fed my soul. I cherish writing to those I know; to encourage someone I’ve never met through a simple letter is just magical.

Yes, it is a stretch beyond our comfort zones to pen words for someone we have never met and do not know. But it is a rich, powerful and fulfilling stretch. This organization offers a beautiful, powerful and practical way to spread the love that we all desperately need.

And this is love displayed beautifully! More Love Letters encourages its letter writers to dress up the letters creatively and pen them on the prettiest of paper. A creatively and beautifully decorated letter can inspire the recipient and bring a bright smile!

It’s a call to use our colored pens and glitter glue. It’s a call to brights and pastels, to neons and neutrals. It’s a call to good, old-fashioned handwriting. It’s a call to get our pretty cards out of storage and into the mail.

So who better, friends, to guide us towards the most beautiful letters than the wonderful LiveOriginally Katie? Tomorrow, on Inspiration-Driven Life, I am so excited to host Katie as she guides us through creating our own stationery. I’ll be crafting some stationery with her coaching too, using supplies and materials I already have on hand.

No matter what stationery you choose, when you send a letter, you send encouragement. Encouragement means care. Encouragement means a smile. Encouragement means a load lightened. Encouragement can even mean healing.

Sarah is inspired by community and creativity. She’s a young professional in the communications, writing and nonprofit fields and can’t get enough of it. Sarah can rock a good cardigan, cherishes a great cup of coffee and loves painting her nails red. Connect with her on her blog, Inspiration-Driven Life, at http://sarahkocischeilz.wordpress.com and on Twitter @SarahKoci.