Why You Should Send Love Letters To Your Friends
The saying “send flowers to the people you love whilst they can still smell them” is not only poignant, it’s true right? Leaving flowers as a mark of love and respect at a funeral has always seemed a little odd to me. When my dad died, I was inundated with flowers which was of course gorgeous, until they started to die and that just seemed to elevate my grief. This is why I buy myself flowers weekly now, it’s a little bit of joy that I get to enjoy.
After you lose someone, your people become that bit more important to you; and this is why I think it’s important to send love letters to your friends. A physical letter is perfection. Whether it be a card, a postcard or a letter written on paper torn out of your notepad. It is as special as the others. My friend Billie wrote us all love letters during Covid. That made my heart so full, especially because at the time, the only contact we could have with the loves of our lives was through the infamous zoom quizzes or three hour Facetimes. It made Billie’s love letter even more special. I still have it on display in my bedroom.
With Valentine’s Day around the corner, I think it’s important to remind ourselves that we don’t need a specific day to exhibit our love, we should be doing this constantly.
I mean let’s face it; Valentine’s Day is a lil’ scammy, right? Most restaurants suddenly offer set menus with sky high prices, trying to woo customers with cheap prosecco and cheesy music (shoutout to Kenny G). And be honest, who actually eats chocolates presented in a heart-shaped box?
I tell my friends I love them all the time. Whether it’s via text, in person or a simple phone call. But it is the writing of a letter that gives you the time to remember how special someone is and to find the words to express yourself. I’ve given too many speeches at too many funerals. And I regularly wonder if I told those people who now can’t hear the words, how much they meant to me. I also often wonder why we don’t all celebrate our lives more often. This is why I insisted we did that last year for me and Theo’s 10-year wedding anniversary, as well as my 40th birthday. There’s no better feeling than being surrounded by all the people you love and who love you. Life is to be celebrated.
So back to the love letter. Just write whatever is in your heart. From a simple ILY, to an essay expressing how grateful you are to have that person in your life, both will be loved as much as the other by the recipient.
Love you, mean it
Lisa x
A final note. As I was writing this piece, my sister Emi, sent me and my siblings this text:
“A bit soppy but just wanted to send a message to say I'm grateful for you all. A friend of mine is going through a big bereavement at the moment and I feel like it really does put life into perspective of telling those you love that you love them!
We've had lots of unexpected things happen to us since Dad (good and bad) but I think he would be so proud that we're all so close and look out for each other xxxxxx”
What random timing, hey?