Are Phone Calls and Written Notes a Lost Art?

Cover image by wix media

For our last Sip and Chat, we spoke about maintaining friendship as an adult. It was a great conversation. I believe we need to bring it back because there are so many nuances to making friends. One of the things that we talked about is how I send written notes in the mail and do random phone calls. I didn't realize this was so "special."

Growing up in Haiti, one of the things my mom instilled in me was written cards. We used to buy cards for EVERY occasion. Whether it was a birthday party, a communion, a wedding, a funeral, we were writing a card. We used to also write thank-you notes and make thank-you phone calls after my birthday. Written notes became a part of me. When cell phones became a thing in high school, I started writing down my birthday text messages because I didn't want to lose them. Yes, it was that deep for me.

Although I no longer write my text messages in my journal, I still write notes. For the past few years, I have been sending notes in the mail to my friends. Mostly prayer notes. I would send the notes if someone came to mind or I would send a note if I know someone is going through a tough situation. I am always so happy whenever someone would tell me that the note came at the right time. I love being able to let my loved ones know I think of them in a tangible way.

It's always fascinating to me when I call someone and they text, "You called?" Yes, I called. Are you going to call me back? Okay, enough pettiness Daenne, carry on with this article!

There are the people who actually answer but are in shock. I will take my friend Michelle for example since I'm sure she won't mind. I remember calling her one time to just check on her. At first her tone was like, "What's up?" I was like, I am just checking on you. I am not calling for any specific reason. We later had a three-way call with another friend and they talked about how "Daenne calls for no reason." Well, Daenne always has a reason. The reason is to check on you. Most of my close friends are used to this by now.

I actually don't like texting at all. If I don't reply back, I promise it's not you it's me. I will return a phone call before replying to a text.

I know mailing a letter or note can be a stretch with trips to the store and post office, but I didn’t realize phone calls were becoming a lost art too. Is it? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments. Do you usually text, call, or still send handwritten notes?

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Xoxo,

DD