I Love Getting the Mail

Happy Me Monday, where I tell you a tidbit about myself.

I love getting the mail. I bet you didn't know that about me.

I think this probably began in my teen years when there was no Internet or texting or e-mail. If you heard from someone who lived far away, it was usually by mail because long distance calling was too expensive. Did I mention there were no cell phones with free long distance either? Yeah. I'm that old.

Anyway, I used to go to a national church youth camp back in my high school days. It was held in Indiana and I'm from Arizona. I always had a blast traveling there with my church youth group. At that camp, I met a lot of other Christian kids and forged some solid friendships, some that continue to this day. This may sound like no big deal to you younger folks, but it IS a big deal because you have no idea how much effort it took to stay in touch back then.

We had to actually hand-write letters. I always used notebook paper, which was my favorite stationary at the time. I could fit a lot onto those big, blank sheets of lined paper. Most of my letter-writing was done with boys I liked. (Stay with me here because you're about to understand why I love getting the mail.) I'd write a long tome of a letter and send it on its merry way after addressing and stamping the envelope. Back then, I had addresses memorized for the special people I wrote to most often.Same with phone numbers. No speed-dial or list of contacts in my phone to look for and then simply hit call. No sir-ee. We had to punch each and every number every single time we called. They soon were committed to memory. But I digress.

So I'd walk that long letter in its bulging envelope to my mailbox, raise the red flag on the box, and wait for the mailman to pick it up. In about three days, it would arrive at its destination. Meanwhile, I'd wait. Did he get my letter? Was he reading it now? Had he written back yet? Was it on its way back to me?

It usually took about two weeks to get a response from the time I mailed the letter. Almost a week of that was travel time. The waiting almost drove me to madness. I'd check the mailbox every day and be either disappointed or delighted by what was or was not in there. When the letter arrived, my friend and I would go over it line by line, looking for clues to decipher what the guy's true feelings were. Did he just like me or really like me?

Nowadays, I still love to get the mail. My husband is self-employed and we often get our payments in the mail. Ka-ching! Yes! A check came today! Or a thank-you note, a picture from our grandkids, or coupons to a favorite restaurant. There's always something to look forward to, even if something fun doesn't come every day.

But what about the bills? Aren't they a bit of a bummer, you say? They could be, but I like to think of them as blessing reminders. If I didn't have a house, I wouldn't have a mortgage payment or an electric bill. Thanks, God for shelter. And nice shelter at that. And thanks for cell phones, cars, cable TV, and all those other things I pay for every month. Every good and perfect gift comes down from God.

So yeah, I love getting the mail every day. A bonus is that when I pull out the key to go to the mailbox, our cute little chihuahua, Kobi, comes running. He trots to the living room and lays down and waits for me to come back with a handful of mail. It's our little routine and I love it. I think Kobi loves getting the mail, too.

If they ever quit delivering mail, even just on Saturday like they sometimes threaten, I'm gonna be one sad girl.

How about you? Do you like getting the mail or dread it? Let me hear from you in the comments. And thanks for reading!

Linda