Rediscovering the Art of Christmas Cards: A Personal Journey
Guest Post From Jim
There's something undeniably charming about the holiday season, especially the age-old tradition of sending and receiving Christmas cards. This year, I found myself drawn back to this timeless practice after years of relying solely on digital greetings or no greetings at all. As a middle-aged man with three grown children and a wife who is immersing herself in a greeting card business, I found myself with some actual free time during the holiday season. Plus, cards were now suddenly available with many options to choose from! I guess I was also yearning for something a little more personal with more emotional connection. Would paper and ink actually provide that over digital displays on my phone or PC? I decided to find out.
What started as ten or so cards to close friends and family ballooned into a list of 25+. It took several nights. I tried to write briefly of some sort of connection I had made with the person (or couple or family) over the last year. Perhaps a mention of seeing them while visiting our old home town or hearing about their daughter recently graduating from college. Some cards were more verbose than others, but I tried to write something other than "Hope your holidays were wonderful..., Love Jim & Jessica". It did take a bit more time and effort, but that time of thinking about a friend or family member and how I had connected with them over the last year made me feel somehow, well... more connected. This process also provided me an opportunity to reach out to a friend or family member that I had not connected with for quite a while. It encouraged me, in a way, to perhaps try to be more in touch with them over the next year.
Not to get too philosophical, but I wondered if there was a purpose to all this. Was it just busywork? Was it just a tradition that I felt obligated to fulfill? Perhaps there was some of that. But it did seem to be an opportunity to bring a little more warmth, connection, dare I say love to the holidays, which can sometimes get very busy and hectic. The last thing I wanted to do was to bring more business into my experience or others. But that wasn't the case for me in this particular situation and I hope that the recipients didn't feel obligated or burdened to send a card back. I had some time and I wanted to connect. I wanted to provide others with the feeling that I get when someone sends me a card with a beautiful message and art and a personal note. I feel grateful. I feel loved just a little bit more than I did before opening the card.
This experience has been a gentle reminder of the power of simple gestures. In a world where digital communication reigns, the act of mailing a holiday greeting card with a simple, person note, for me, felt like a genuine expression of care and connection. It's a tradition that I'm glad to have rediscovered and one that I hope to keep alive in the years to come.
