I pulled over the other day to take a shot of these mailboxes because I thought that they were just lovely. Then I became frightened by a thought. It originated with a fleeting memory of a rotary dial phone that I showed my girls at the thrift store one day a few years back. I remember smiling as I inserted my right index finger into the fifth hole and proceeded to dial 522-4746 (my phone number for the first 12 years of my life) while holding the barbell of a receiver up to my ear. You remember, the one with 3 feet of coil that kept you attached to the unit.
Anyway, I'm looking at these mailboxes and thinking to myself, "will I be fondly smiling while demonstrating the little red flag to my grandchildren someday on our venture to the thrift store? Will they be looking at me like I'm daft as I open the front and pretend to lick an envelope closed, place a kiss on it and deposit it into the vintage receptacle?"
A couple of days ago my dear friend sent me a hand written note with a magazine article in it, just because it made her think of me. I appreciate the speed and ease of the internet, but there is nothing like walking out to the mailbox and finding an envelope embellished with your name, written by the hand of someone you love.
And so I pray that there never comes a day that finds these beautiful public servants 'uprooted' from our country roads. Nor a generation that doesn't know the satisfaction of watching and waiting for snail mail.
Blessings, Debbie
Oh for sure the day is coming. I told oldest grandson about having 3 channels on TV and in black and white..he thought I was from another planet.The I proceded to tell him how so many people were on a landline and had to share the phone..He again thought I was an alien..It's going to happen...I can feel it in my ole(HAHA) bones...
ReplyDeleteThank God I didn't have to walk to school. He would have fainted!
~~HUGS~~
Those mailboxes would have stopped me, too, Debbie! What a great picture. The day you describe IS coming closer and closer, I fear. And I agree with you 100%...something very precious will be lost.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, think what pleasure something like blogging has brought to us...Guess we can't have it all.
Well, your post has me wondering now. I remember the phones and now maybe my mail box could become a thing of the past? I know change happens, but sometimes I wish it didn't. I still have letters written by my grandparents that I prize, which is something I can't say about a printed email.
ReplyDeleteHave a wonderful Monday Debbie and please let the girls know that Beatrix is behaving now. I will try and get a picture this week as I just know they want one to frame and show off to everyone they know or might come in contact with while out in public.
It is a thrill to get a letter in the mail, although it does happen less often these days. Cool pic:@)
ReplyDeleteOh I'm so with you on this! What a lovely photo...I also would have stopped to snap it! Hubby and I still laugh about the day our older son was rummaging through boxes in the basement. "What is THIS?" he asked, incredulously. It was a not-all-THAT old 8 track tape. Big and bulky, and not very high tech! Funny, I remember the phone number we had when I was growing up too..but it began with "WA" which stood for "Walnut"...
ReplyDeleteYou are so right about the pleasure of receiving a handwritten note. It is just so much more personal... each person's handwriting as unique as they are... the energy and intent of choosing and writing the words on paper or cards that are chosen with care... It will be sad if they disappear. blessings ~ tanna
ReplyDeleteHey Debbie, I love rows of mail boxes by the roadside. I often want to stop and snap pics of them and I totally agree with you about hand written snail mail, nothing beats it.
ReplyDeleteMy sister lives in the Uk and when I find a blue aerogramme with a Royal Mail stamp on it, my heart skips a beat of excitement. i sit it on the kitchen bench and make sure I do all my jobs before I allow myself the pleasure of sitting down and reading it. They are a real treat .
Thanks for visiting my blog, it was lovely to hear from you........
Claire :}
To this day I love to check the mailbox to see what has been delivered, I hope that anticipation never goes away :) Happy Monday!
ReplyDeleteGreat points, a lump came in my throat as I read this post and thought how I so enjoy seeing familiar handwritting in my box. Thanks for the reminder to teach our young ones, by sending them notes and cards, to keep this institution alive.
ReplyDeleteOh I totally agree...that surprise in the mailbox is still the best. My five year old loves to go out and get the mail, even though it is only junk...he is delighted if he ever gets mail.
ReplyDeleteWe have laughed at them not knowing what a phone booth was or even a public phone without the booth...times are changing.
Will they even own handwritten cards or letters? I do hope we don't let it all be taken away.
I agree! I am making more effort to send friends cards and letters. It is so discouraging to walk the half mile to and from the mailbox and find it full of bills and advertising circulars!
ReplyDeleteOh I know your fear, such a true post. Here, we have a "community mailbox" - a big box with everyone's locked mail boxes. Supposedly it's for security (my thought is laziness), and we were so bummed that we didn't have an out-at-the-sidewalk mailbox. It was one of the things we bought a house for!
ReplyDeleteDebbie, I still look forward to mail, and still send handwritten notes, usually they include a check or newspaper article, etc. And, of course, I still send birthday and anniversary cards, get well, and so on. As long as stamps stay in the realm of affordable, snail mail can keep chugging along its way. xo,
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree more. There is just something about those quirky little boxes that I like.
ReplyDeleteEmail doesn't compare to a note sent the old fashioned way.
I can't remember the last time I received a handwritten letter. We don't have mailboxes in our village. You must pick up your mail at the post office via a P.O. box. How's that for old fashioned? Your story reminds me of a conversation I had with my boys when they were little. I was telling them that we didn't have cable TV when I was a girl. The youngest said "Gosh! Did they have bicycles when you were little?"
ReplyDeleteI am glad you took that picture because now that you said it, that might happen, like showing my kids a record.
ReplyDeleteI think that is so nice that you watched the Potter movie. I have been thinking about it since I started these books.
Have you ever read Mitford? They are nice like that but all in the village around Hill Top Farm.
I hope the same but times, they are a changing and so fast too. I got your email and I will get that package off as soon as I can this week! :D
ReplyDeleteGreat picture! I love receiving letters. Emails are great, but there is nothing like a handwritten letter to cheer the corners of your heart! I remember the first telephone we got. It arrived on a Tuesday which was the day I had piano lessons and I rushed round to my lesson eager to let my teacher be the first person to be told my new phone number, only to have her say "I have no need of your phone number as I wont be calling you". I was so sad!! Ha LOL!!!
ReplyDeleteGreat photo of the mailboxes all ready and waiting. Oh I do hope that you're right. It seems strange to think that there might not be a need for a mailbox one day.
ReplyDeleteAgree - agree I enjoy a letter or a card from the post office from dear friends and family BUT not the juck mail.. I see it slowly fadding away... like some many other wonderful things..I saw at the Harward's you won her give away super thrilled for you. Kris
ReplyDeleteMy sentiments exactly about mailboxes, and going to the mailbox and finding something special from a friend. Oh, but I must confess something here that still makes me whince a little, only a little though because it was so convenient and I needed graceful convenience today. I did an email birthday invitation for Charlotte's birthday party planned for next week. So easy and five have already replied!
ReplyDeleteI love going to my mailbox in the afternoon. I simply love it. I really hope they stick around too...
ReplyDeleteawww, I certainly hope not...nothing can replace getting a real letter in the mail. Today I received an invite to graduation from a past student and it just warmed my heart!
ReplyDeletethanks for a great photo!
Wonderful photo!
ReplyDeleteOh, I am just like you in this regard. I hope they never replace the snail mail. If you are into art on paper you have to love snail mail!! I treasure my saved letters from loved ones. :)
Thanks for you sweet suggestion about how to finish my wood burned birds. For going the extra mile and commenting on the old post to let me know! I am not sure why BLOGGER is acting so crazy for me?? I hope my readers are patient with me through this. :)
Have a great evening, sweet friend!
xoxo...Gloria
In the last village we lived we didn't have a mail delivery. So when we finally moved here just over two years ago, I bought a new mail box, only to find that we have to pick up our mail at the local store/PO.
ReplyDeleteWhat a let down. I have since donated the mail box to the goodwill. Maa
Oh Debbie, I hope not either. There is something so exciting about getting snail mail! That is a fantastic photo you took too. I love it!
ReplyDeleteBlessings!
Deborah
Thanks Debbie! hope you enjoy the cupcakes and I love your mailbox picture and when I think of how far the telephone has come in my lifetime it is mind boggling! and I'm not that old!
ReplyDeleteLove the photo of the mail boxes. Not a sight we have in the UK. Our mail comes straight through the letter box and on to the doormat. Although our postman has been known to leave it on the kitchen table if it doesn't fit through the letterbox. Not sure you get that service in the city, but certainly in the country!
ReplyDeleteOh, how I love my occasional pieces of real paper snail mail.....
ReplyDeleteHi Debbie, thanks for visiting my blog and leaving a comment !
ReplyDeleteI love this post because I too, am very fond of snail mail and used to correspond a lot, and get envelopes from the whole world. It was such fun !
I could not agree more, Debbie. I had over 100 pen pals at one point in my teen years. It was a blessed hobby and I'm still friends with some of those people today. Actual mail from an actual person is such a fun fun fun part of life!
ReplyDelete