Why it is important to write letters to your family and friends – Advice for exchange students

When you read the title of this article, you might have thought “Is she crazy? We are in 2020, no need for using homing pigeons, we can directly ‘Facetime’ with our family and friends!”.

That is fair enough. The 21st century might have brought a lot of bad sides, but one definitely good invention has been telecommunication, internet, social media and so on – when it comes to keeping in touch with our close family and friends while we are away.

To be honest, I might never have gone abroad for one year if this did not exist. Being able to hear the voice or even see your family and friends can help reduce the distance between you and them. It is always nice to chit chat as often and as long as one wants.

However, I still think that communicating through letters is a good thing, and can complete in a way the relationship that we maintain with people from home. I for example write letters to my close family and friends, maybe once a month, and I can tell that waiting for a letter back is way more exciting than waiting for someone to reply on my last 4-words-text on WhatsApp.

I am not saying that we all should only communicate through letters like the old times, but this is an alternative way of keeping in touch with our family and friends. A letter is tangible, concrete. It takes much more effort to hand write your thoughts, organise them. Besides, you and your penfriend(s) can keep a trace of your epistolary relation during your exchange semester or year.

In the end, it is up to you to communicate the way you want with your family and friends. After all, this article is in a broader sense emphasizing on the importance of keeping good contact with the persons that we love! No matter how you do it – I recommend you to take a piece of paper and a pen, and try to write some kind words and describe how incredible your experience in Örebro is!

For some more practical information, you can buy stamps at Pressbyrån and send your letters just behind it in the yellow post office box! Price for Europe is 22 kr (February 2020).

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