The envelope above held a later letter from my grandfather postmarked 1965. I didn’t have the envelope from the 1957 letter described in this article.
My grandfather, Robert Beverley Herbert, was 78 years old when he wrote the letter below to me, his seven-year-old granddaughter in Virginia. He was a busy attorney in Columbia, South Carolina, yet he took the time to write to me fairly often.
As I write this today, that was 58 years ago, yet as I hold the yellowed page this morning, I can still hear his voice and remember the thrill of finding a real letter addressed to me in our rural mailbox. This is the oldest one I have, but how moved I am to be reminded of his encouragement of my writing.
“I was glad to get your letter and to know that the book reached you all right,” he began. The book he refers to was actually a beautiful leather-bound journal. I was breathless at the allure of those exquisite, lined white pages, each with an embossed page number in the upper corner.
Is there anything more filled with promise than a blank page?
It can hold absolutely anything…thoughts, hopes, memories, and dreams!
He said he would send me another when I filled it up, and he kept his promise at least three times over the years. My early entries, of course, were dreadful and boring, but he knew then what the best writing teachers have always known: writers must write to hone their craft, even when the writing is rough and terrible.
I believe he sent a personalized journal to each of his 16 grandchildren at one time or another, along with the encouragement to write in it and write letters to him.
“I hope you will do a lot of writing. The more you do the better you will do it, and it will be a pleasure to you as long as you live.”
Oh, how right he was!
A personal note or letter is a powerful thing, even when it is typed, as his was. His own writing was riddled with errors and lack of punctuation, but he shared the vivid details of his life and managed to convey his deep devotion to me and to his family. Each one is a treasure.
Is there a child or young person in your life to whom you could write a letter and plant the seeds of that child’s future? Don’t wait for more time or better stationery or a nicer pen. Don’t fret over what to say. Just talk as though you were together in person.
Don’t wait.
Do it today.
Pin this:
Let’s Be Bridge Builders
What a treasure. I love reading old letters. My grandfather also wrote many letters, as did my father. Letter writing is truly a lost art.
And, his love and encouragement for you is so evident.
Thank you so much for reading and commenting, Sally! Yes, you’re right, that his love and encouragement is so evident — and that’s why handwritten notes are so powerful, because they can be read and re-read and continue to convey their messages long after the writer is gone.
What a great idea Karen! Elizabeth your grandfather was so right to send the journals to his grandchildren, so thoughtful, and a gift that grows as you use it. I remember exchanging letters from my paternal grandmother from Maine, and how much the correspondence meant to me when I was a young child. Family encouragement of your writing as a child gives a sense of worth – they value your writing and you know that it is part of you. Thank you for sharing this sweet family memory.
Thank you so much, Jennifer, for commenting and sharing your own beautiful family memory. I have written so many times on this blog about little things that make such a difference in the lives of others—and most we’ll never know about. This is a great example that we need to do them anyway, even when we don’t know if it’s noticed or appreciated.
Wonderful story, E. I doubt I could get my grandsons to reply to normal letters, so I’m going to set up a code, send them the code, and then write to them in the code so they have to decifer it. That might work. Them, writing? Hmmm. Don’t think so. But I’m going to give it a shot.
This is brilliant, Karen! Talk about connection — you’ve figured out a way to connect with these boys’ love if drama and intrigue and made it fun. I can’t wait to hear about it when you do it. I remember being fascinated with secret codes when I was their age.
We will see! They get back late tonight from a trip…so I may not get a response for a few days. I remember my son and I did this when he was at military academy (h.s.) and he initiated it. So maybe he can encourage the boys to participate with MoMo. I hope so!
Thank you for sharing this early and powerful correspondence with your grandfather. What a wonderful man he must’ve been, to take so much interest in his grandchildren and to take the time to let them know they were important. What a treasure!
It IS a treasure, Jane, and the funny thing is that he seemed quite old to us, so we were all a bit intimidated until we got older. He was 71 when I was born. But he was, indeed, a wonderful man and I’m quite proud of his accomplishments. When he was 80 years old in 1960 (and quite liberal for the time in South Carolina), he ran against Strom Thurmond for U.S. Senate seat from South Carolina, knowing full well he didn’t have a chance to win but saying his conscience wouldn’t let him do anything else. Afterward, Thurmond had high praise for him: “[Herbert] was an outstanding citizen whose eloquence and understanding made him an invaluable part of his time in history. Mr. Herbert was truly a man of dedication to high principle and diligence to fairness and constitutional government.” That makes him all the more remarkable that he paid so much attention to the cultivation of his grandchildren. Thanks so much for reading and commenting.
I think the beautiful part of all of this is that a 7-year old little Elizabeth thought to hold onto a letter from her grandfather and can find it now! I have many letters that I received from grandparents and relatives that I have held onto. I also have quite a few hand written letters, written by me as a child that were stored away and returned to me once loved ones had passed on. These are the letters that I believe we should be sharing with our grandchildren and young children now.
Thank you for this wonderful comment, Andy. Yes, we should, indeed, be sharing treasures of the past with our young ones. I agree completely!
What a beautiful reminder of the importance of sending letters, sending hope and love through the mail. Thank you for this inspiration; I’m going to start sending a letter to each of my grandchildren. The oldest is 7, and I thinks she’s ready for her first journal, don’t you???
Pam, I do think it depends on the child, but even if all she does is put a few words in it, she will be thrilled that you thought she was “big enough” to have her own. I always love your comments and insights…and there’s a snail mail letter to you in my Outbox right now waiting to be taken to the post office :-).
I just ordered a pink-sequined-butterfly-covered diary for her; her birthday is in 10 days. I’m so excited. Thanks much for the idea and the encouragement. <3
Oh my gosh, she will LOVE it, Pam! If you and her parents are comfortable, maybe you’ll post a picture of her with her journal on your blog.
One of the things I must retrieve when I get back to VA this summer is the last letter my mom wrote to me. We had no way of knowing it would be the last, but her beautiful handwriting almost brings her back to me.
Esther, you have hit on something I didn’t mention in my post, but it is the ability of just seeing a familiar handwriting to bring that person back to our minds and hearts. My heart still clutches to see my father’s handwriting when I come across it in a drawer.
Thank you for sharing this treasure Elizabeth. Oh what I would give to have such a letter from a grandparent. The practice of letter writing is so rare nowadays. I think we have forgotten what lasting impressions they can make and how precious they become over the years.
Thank you, Laura! What a treat to see your comment here. I am on a mission to revive the art of personal letter/note writing. It will be such a loss if we stop using that very special connection tool.
I love this, Elizabeth. In so many ways.
I’m glad, Vicki — you and I go back ALMOST as long as this letter, and I so appreciate your support of my blog!
What a special Grandaddy you had and how nice that he saw how special you were at that young age. I’m sure he is very proud of you.
Thank you, Mickey — yes, I am enormously blessed with an amazing family and supportive family members. This grandfather lived to almost 95 and was able to toast me at my wedding. Remarkable!
And I’m sure he is still very proud of you. 😉
I am a letter writer myself as well. I love that you kept his letter for so many years. What a lovely legacy! ♥
Thank you for dropping by and leaving such a lovely comment. I hadn’t looked at these letters in years, and I was thrilled to find them in my desk and enjoy them all over again. I’ll be featuring some of my grandfather’s nuggets of wisdom in future posts.