write a letter once a week

Sophie wrote a note (in Japanese!) to Hitomi and I slipped it into a birthday card for Hitomi, our little neighbor in Japan. I added some Halloween stickers and we all signed the card and expressed how much we miss and love them all…

I sent another letter to Yukari…and finally got one back yesterday!

I finally wrote a letter to Yukari and sent it yesterday. I just bought a card instead of using notebook paper or something! I did finally find stationery at Hallmark but it was this fancy cream paper with gold borders. That’s nice and very pretty but I just want some paper to write letters on!
Yukari is the only friend in Japan from whom I haven’t heard yet because she doesn’t have a computer and so no email. I remembered too late that her birthday and her daughter’s are next week! So I just jotted well wishes as a p.s.

I can’t find any. In Japan, stationery pretty or plain was in abundance everywhere I turned. I bought all kinds of stationery at the dollar store, fancy stationery shops, malls…I wish I’d bought more because here I can’t seem to find any! There are boxes of thank you notes and invitations and ugly little notecards but no plain stationery…Hallmark? really? Who else should have stationery if not Hallmark?
All my stationery is on a boat somewhere. I’m going to have to just buy a greeting card. Almost everyone in Japan can communicate via email…except Yukari and I really miss her.

I wrote 9 letters this week and they were some of the most difficult ones I’ve ever written. I wrote letters to Sophie’s teachers at school and Will’s and one to Sophie’s tutor who has come into our home twice a week for over a year. These people worked patiently and calmly and lovingly with our children, teaching them math and Japanese and reading as well as thoughtfulness and, of course for Will, the basic school skills. This was his first school!
They took our children’s fears into their hands and soothed them at a time when they were the most heightened and when I could not be right there for them…because that is what teachers do the world round. And how do you thank someone for that?
With letters, I guess, and tears, lots of tears…

More birthdays this week…their cards will be late.
I sent a little postcard to my sister as she is having a bad time right now. She got laid off from her sales job and has had to put her house up for sale. And, surprise! she decided that she wanted to try to get back with her estranged husband but he has a new girlfriend and is happy now…
So my sister is not…

I wrote notes to the Japanese moms last week and this week, I sent cards to a friend in England for his birthday, a friend at home who is fighting cancer and a package to my niece for her birthday…

for my brother. Now I just need to get to the post office and actually mail these letters!

I wrote a letter to my old piano teacher last week but I haven’t sent it yet…who should get a letter this week?

I’m already late with my nephew’s birthday so there is one package with his little gift and my other nephew’s…and some candy and other treats and a package for WN with the chum’s lost sock and some goodies. These both have letters in them, mostly to explain what all the stuff in the packages is but also because…letters are fun!
Also, the Mother’s Day cards for the mother and the mother-in-law will go out today. Late, too…