Write a letter.
Not an e-mail, a letter, what Lord Byron called,
“The only device
combining solitude with good company.”
Not to your “friend”
or Congress-friend, but to a loved one: your mom, your BFF, a pal having a hard
time of it.
Don’t wait for a
reply. Just write another letter.
Buy some
correspondence that appeals to you, some first-class, global stamps.
The legibility of
your unpracticed script may be on the ugly side in the beginning, but give
yourself time. It will improve. And you’ll be so much the better for it.
My advice? Get
thee to an artist supply shop and test some pens.
They are not all
created equal. Ballpoint can be smudgy; fountain, precious; craftsman, too
arty.
I was touched by what
I saw in “The Banished Immortal: The Life of Li Bai,” by Ha Jin, about the
eponymous hero of this unreadable novel. It seems that some calligraphy has
been discovered and attributed to the eighth century poet.
The calligraphy –
his penmanship – is seen as a treasure trove for those looking to define the
character of this ancient legend to the Chinese.
Sure, Western
folks have handwriting analysis, that is associated with voodoo pseudosciences
like the horoscope, but Chinese calligraphy study is seen as the real deal.
Find that pen that
says your “John Henry” and get down to putting your special words on paper.
Yes, the old-fashioned way.
Next: Running for Your Life: Faulkner Fix
