I’m not alone in my love of handwriting!
I had no idea there was an organization dedicated to preserving penmanship and handwriting in the world: IAMPETH, the International Association of Master Penmen, Engrossers, and Teachers of Handwriting. I was so excited and impressed to learn about them from the video below (thank you Sandra Charles, innkeeper at Lackawanna Bed & Breakfast, for sharing it on Facebook) that I joined right away, simply to cast my lot with others who share my passion for the handwritten word. The level of penmanship represented by a master penman, however, is on an entirely different plane than that of a simple note writer.
Master penmen: a rare and small group of artists
There are currently twelve master penmen in the world. Jake Weidmann is the youngest.
“Jake’s unique. His skill is among the highest of any living penmen I know of today,” says Michael Sull, IAMPETH Director, in the fascinating video below.
Both Jake and Michael are students of Platt Rogers Spencer, the creator of American penmanship (specifically Spencerian penmanship). According to Jake, Spencer took his inspiration from nature, and I loved discovering yet another beautiful connection between connections.
Jake feels strongly about the importance of teaching children to write with pen and paper and the long-range impact that will have on our culture and civilization. “We’re abdicating so much of what we’re learning and retaining, not to our own memories but to the memories of our computers and other devices. By doing the different tactile movements of forming the individual letters and linking those letters one to another, and then putting those words into the context of a sentence, you’re actually engraining the information in your brain.”
Michael agrees: “If you don’t teach your child handwriting, the thought that they develop when they wish to communicate through a computer will vanish as soon as they touch the keyboard.”
Jake Weidmann wants more young people to fall in love with writing by hand! I am proud to share this video about Jake and his work, and I hope you’ll find it as fascinating as I did.
If you haven’t felt the pleasure of writing by hand lately, I suggest you splurge on a quality fountain pen and some excellent writing paper. It makes all the difference in the world! Here’s the Waterman Charleston Fountain Pen I use (mine is ivory-colored, and I prefer the medium nib).
And I love my Carlson Craft imprinted stationery. The paper stock is rich and wonderful for writing with a fountain pen. I’m a distributor for Carlson Craft stationery, so peruse their online catalog and Call me to order for you with a Heartspoken discount. The triple-embossed ecru notecard below is just one of their many handsome items.
More about personal note writing
I write often about writing personal handwritten notes and try to encourage others to use this powerful connection tool more often. CLICK HERE and scroll down to find my past articles in this topic. And please join my Facebook group The Art of the Heartspoken Note.
Life Is Short: A Benediction
I am afraid this fountain pen is out of my price range. I do like the way the gel pens write, and I will have to stick with those. Jake’s artwork is amazing! I think penmanship is going the way of the metal clip-on roller skates. When writing hand-written notes, I do take more time than when I jot notes at my desk or take notes in class. I learned penmanship in school years ago, but I have allowed my style to deteriorate over the years. This post has inspired me! I was just talking with friends last night about how kids today know little about the value of what we learned in school – the value of a well-considered note or thank you.
It is, indeed, a pricey pen — my beloved got it for me on one of my big birthdays to acknowledge my efforts as a writer, and I have absolutely loved the feel of it in my hand and the smoothness of it on paper.
Every time I despair that handwritten notes are going extinct, I see something that makes me think there’s a backlash to all the digital and technology. A friend of mine just told me her son-in-law writes personal notes every single day to anyone he has met that day. What a great relationship-building strategy!