A Text Message Will Never Last 50 Years
With Valentine’s Day coming up, millions of digital messages will be sent this Saturday. Emojis of hearts, quick “Luv U” texts, and funny GIFs.
They are instant, efficient, and… completely temporary.
I was rummaging through a box in the closet recently and found a bundle of letters from over 40 years ago. The paper is yellowing and the ink is fading a little, but the feeling is still there.
There is something powerful about a handwritten love letter. You know that the person had to sit down, find a pen, get a stamp, and walk to the mailbox. They had to think about what they wanted to say. There is no “backspace” on a piece of stationery.
When you hold a letter, you are holding a piece of history. You can see the emotion in the handwriting—where they pressed hard on the page, or where the writing got a little scribbly because they were rushing to get it in the post.
A text message disappears when you buy a new phone. A letter stays in a shoebox at the top of the closet, waiting to be rediscovered by your grandchildren.
A Note on Legacy: Preserving these kinds of physical memories—letters, photos, and the stories behind them—is exactly what we focus on in our Legacy Memoir Course. If you have a shoebox full of history you don’t want forgotten, take a look at the “Courses” tab on the website. It might be the best gift you can leave your family.