Sharon Holt writes:
Remember the days when the letterbox held the
anticipation of news from a friend? These days, emails, texts and other forms
of digital communication have all but ended the daily walk down to the
letterbox. But Hamilton woman, Judi Billcliff, is determined to bring back
snail mail – if only for one day a year.
As an author and drama teacher, Judi loves words in
any form. She is promoting June 13 as Snail Mail Day in an effort to bring back
the magic of sending and receiving letters through the mail.
“Most children don’t know the excitement of mail
arriving in the letterbox with their name on it,” says Judi. “I even wonder how
many young people have written and posted a letter.”
The idea for Snail Mail Day occurred to Judi when she
watched her adult daughter sitting on the floor with a friend, surrounded by
their children and piles of letters the women had written to each other as
teenagers.
“When I saw them laughing at the stories held within
those pages, I realised what we are losing by relying on digital technology for
our communication,” she says.
“Those memories and family history either don't get
recorded, or are stored on a computer – but what happens when the computer
crashes?”
At that moment, Judi decided to promote a special day
when new memories could be created. “I thought June 13 would be appropriate
because it’s the anniversary of my mother’s death and she was an avid letter
writer.”
Judi has published several children’s poetry books and
she couldn’t resist creating a ditty around the word SNAIL to help promote
letter writing on June 13.
S end
N ‘yone
A n
I nteresting
L etter
N ‘yone
A n
I nteresting
L etter
She is
encouraging New Zealand families, schools “and everyone really” to bring joy to
others by writing and sending a letter to a friend or family member on June 13.
She hopes the idea will catch on and be repeated every year. “It’s about
preserving our history and creating new history for generations to come,” she
explains.
To share
your support for Snail Mail Day and keep informed about the day, visit the
SNAIL MAIL Day page on Facebook.
ends
For more information, contact Judi
Billcliff: 027 531 5381 or (07) 846 6158
1 comment:
Thanks for this Graham. Snail Mail Day is gathering momentum as more people come on board. Libraries in the Waikato are loving the idea and will be encouraging people on the day to write a letter while at the library. Schools are exchanging letters with schools in others areas, and even as far afield as Canada. Some are writing to someone special in their lives. I've been getting texts and calls from people wanting to share with me the precious letters they've kept through the years. The Facebook page continues to grow, and children have been reading the page especially for them on my website. A shame TVNZ didn't see it as newsworthy. Next year I hope it will be even bigger.
Judi Billcliff
Rainbow Poetry
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