“…Just got your charming epistle. I was so glad to get it. I really did not expect it. But the one I got yesterday. OH. my. how can you write such a masterpiece. I was trying to go to sleep all morning but I just knew I had a letter coming and I knew if I went to sleep I might not wake up when the Postman came… It surely was great. 7 folders just like a book of love. I enjoyed it so much that I took thirty minutes of intermission and read it again. I had a little head ache before I started but when I finished it was all gone….” From Fred to Florence, June 1923

Can you imagine receiving or writing letters like that?

In a world that is full of minute texts, emails fired off as fast as possible and everything rushed and racing ahead at light speed, it is a wonder relationships ever get off the ground. Over the last year, I have been in a virtual time warp focusing on a special courtship between two very special people – my grandparents.

They met at a Halloween carnival in 1922 where my grandmother was a gypsy fortune teller and my grandfather was the handsome young man who wandered in to have his fortune read. I suppose you can say the Fates definitely had their hand in this one. What followed was a rather lengthy courtship during which time they wrote long letters to one another (even when they lived in the same city) and developed an intensely strong bond that lasted nearly 70 years.

The treasure trove of their letters, which I discovered a few years ago and have been posting online on my website HERE – has not only given me a very special insight into their early years together, but also has made me think about the courtships of times gone by and the “courtship” period now.

I am as guilty as the next person of whittling down communication to its lowest common denominator and firing off rushed emails rather than taking a breath and spending more time on what I am saying. Words have been crushed into tiny fragments, and we spend so much time only tuning halfway into conversations and real human interaction. Can you imagine taking the time to hand write a letter? To really put thought into the email and share in great detail what you were thinking, feeling and doing? As I read through the numerous letters, I find myself smiling at the stories told or how my grandfather always asks for more long letters from his dearest. There are arguments, insecurities, jealousies and all the other fun aspects of human nature when two people get together – there is also a growing friendship and love that is talked about and acknowledged. They share stories of their every day activities as well as the more notable ones. There is talk of plans for the future and an understanding they have of what one another wants during their life.

What if we viewed communications from our significant other with the same attention and importance as people used to do? What if we actually spoke to one another and listened more? What if we focused? No TV at hand to catch your eye, no BlackBerry or iPhone buzzing in your hand demanding attention. What if we refocused that attention back to the person across the table or sitting next to us? What if we really got to know one another and became good friends before moving on to the next stage of the relationship?

What if?

Read the full correspondence between Fred & Florence HERE!