You know, it’s been 15 years since I last saw that shoebox filled with notes from my teenage years. It must have been lost during one of our moves. Now, all I have left are memories of those days spent scribbling away on everything from colorful stationery to the margins of school textbooks. Those notes were like love letters, capturing the excitement of first crushes and the deep bonds of friendships. Each note was a little piece of art — messages decorated with doodles, hearts over the “i’s,” and handwritten poetry that brought us all together.
I can vividly recall the countless times I’d be found curled up on my bed, hiding notes in my math book during class, or slipping them into lockers. My dad always said those notes were crucial, and he was right. I wish I could revisit the stories my friends and I created, the dramas that played out through our unique handwriting styles — the flowing scripts of girls and the more awkward scrawls of boys.
It makes me wonder, how will my kids experience love without those handwritten notes? How will they connect with one another through the emojis and shortcuts of texting? When I think of romance today, I can only reference my texting life with my husband. Sure, we’ve been together since the beginning of the millennium, but our latest text exchange was about a bug on our driveway. Romantic, right? A handwritten note would have never been about lawn grubs, I assure you! Even our sweet messages are reduced to minimalistic “luv u”s.
There’s something special about putting pen to paper that lets people truly express themselves. But this beautiful practice seems to be fading fast. The last major pop culture reference I can think of is from Friends, when Rachel penned an 18-page note to Ross laying out the terms of their relationship. That episode captured the essence of note-writing so well, I almost forgot about my shoebox.
Just like in that sitcom, I’ve received and given notes that brought me joy and heartbreak. There was no ambiguity in those pieces of paper; emotions flowed directly from heart to sleeve. But how do kids convey their feelings now? I really don’t understand it.
Although love existed before the written word, I’m curious how my kids will navigate their feelings in this fast-paced digital world. I guess I’ll have to trust them to find their own way while I shoot off a quick text to my husband about the dry cleaning (wink emoji).
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In summary, while I reminisce about the heartfelt notes of my youth, I wonder how my kids will express their own love in a world dominated by technology. They’ll find their way, I suppose — just as I did, even if it means I have to figure it out on a piece of paper first.