Writer's Benefit

I write both on paper and on my computer.

I used to just do it ONLY on the computer but now I’ve begun to do a lot of it on paper.

We’ve become so accustomed to our computers and smart phones coming with automatic spell check (even though some people ignore that little red line) that when it DOES come time to put pen to paper we’ve really forgotten how to spell.

I’m guilty of going to Google and typing in a word just to make sure I was spelling it correctly, or typing it into Word and having them check it for me.

Putting pen to paper has reinforced the spelling talents I had back in grade school (yes, I went far in the Spelling Bee competitions, lol). I’m being forced, a good thing, to actually look at a word that I’m unsure of and sound it out and even think on it to come up with its correct definition.

Also, putting pen to paper is so much more personal than texting and emailing. It means that someone took their time to actually sit down, find some paper and a pen and express their thoughts and feelings to you. Personal letters are becoming extinct but I’m going to keep them alive.

Remember when it was cool to have a pen pal? You couldn’t wait to tell them about what was going on with you and then you’d anxiously wait for their return letter in the mail? Well, one of my best friends could be called my pen pal. We haven’t seen each other since we first initially met back in 2002. We keep in touch through long emails and long letters. It’s a great feeling to sit down and write her a letter.

Oh and it doesn’t hurt that I adore my own handwriting. It makes writing out "thank you" cards that much more fun. Esp. when I use a color sharpie and not just a regular pen.  I had a guy at the post office watch me write out an address and asked me if I was a teacher. I told him I was and asked him how he knew. He said I had the handwriting of a teacher, nice, neat and very legible and easy to understand. The lady behind the counter agreed and said she wished I could write out addresses for everybody b/c some people come in with handwriting they themselves probably couldn’t read.

Boy, if that were a REAL job, I’d definitely take it