By hand

I've always been a writer of letters; when I was 8, I was already keeping up with several pen pals, including one in Ghana. The correspondence doesn't always last, but there's something poignant about taking time out of your grind to put a thoughtful pen to paper. When The Rumpus announced "Letters to Everyone," I thought I'd join in. (The gist, from the site: "You send in a letter, single page (double sided OK) and include a regular size # 10 self-addressed stamped envelope. We’ll make copies of all the letters and send five letters back to you in the stamped envelope you provided.")

I sent off my missive a few weeks ago, then got absorbed in the day-to-day and nearly forgot that I was to receive a packet of responses. And then, on Monday, my envelope showed up, four letters folded inside. 

Magic. Just magic. I heard from a woman who had a 10-minute love affair, a guy proposing a sort of "choose your own adventure" writing project to be conducted through the mail, and a geoduck farmer who lives not more than four hours from where I grew up. Now I just need to write them all back: it begins.