Pen Pals on Vacation

What can be more refreshing on a hot summer afternoon than to receive several pen pal letters in your mailbox? I look forward to the mailman's arrival all year long, but sometimes the summer doldrums hit letter writers. Many of our pals take vacations and are away for days at a time. Some have the children home on summer vacation and are very busy being moms who drive kids to their various activities and sports practices and games. Some plant large gardens and have to till them, gather the produce, and then can and preserve it. So what can you do when the mail is slow or when you yourself are so wrapped up in summer activities that it's hard to find a moment to write to a special pal or person?

Pack some writing supplies into your suitcase or tote bag. You can always write a letter while you wait for children to finish their swimming lessons, softball practice, or dance lessons. Be sure to include some postcards and greeting cards in your "letter bag" so you can take care of those short but important writing chores. Don't forget to include the stamps in various sizes (20¢ for post cards, 34¢ for letters, and even a few 55¢ for those long epistles). That way you can drop the finished letter or card into the nearest mailbox and not misplace it.

Buy them a tuck-in souvenir while you are away. Look at things like unusual book marks, unusual commemorative stamps (yes, they might be available at home, too), a poem, or special tuck in cards that you find in a lot of card shops. Some places have fantastic tablets and note cards that show a bit of regional scenery, too. Send them a little taste of your vacation. Find the regional cook book or a humorous bumper sticker that fits them just right. I have one which says "English teachers are NOVEL lovers!" purchased at a convention. I took back several for my colleagues. You can even buy a tee shirt! It honestly makes poking in those gift and souvenir shops a lot more fun if you shop with someone else in mind, too! Stop at a state information center on the road and pick up a few brochures telling about the places you have been or plan to go. Most of these are free, and many are made to fit into a regular business sized envelope. Look for some of the unusual ones -- like the Big Bertha giant steam shovel or the world's largest ball of twine in Kansas. I'll bet they don't have those already!

Make a video of your trip and reproduce it for the few folks who might not be able to get out and about and see and do all of the things that you enjoy doing in the summer. If you aren't a great photographer, some places even sell videos of their state or tourist attractions.

Or write up a letter with some pure summer fantasy starting with some catchy sentence like, "Today I took my first bungee jump off the Golden Gate Bridge!" At least that will wake them up for a little while. Well, I've got to get back to my free fall sky diving lessons.