Write a Love Letter Today

The words don’t matter, as long as they are kind

You should write a love letter today.

If you’re carrying unspoken feelings, write a love letter. Be prepared for major anxiety about whether you used the right postage, had the right address, or chose the right words. Be prepared not to know when they’ll receive it or whether you’ll receive anything back. If you do receive a response by mail — keep it. Save it. You’ll read it differently in 5, 10, 30 years, and understand layers previously invisible to your impatient mind.

If you’re the parent of a young child, and find yourself staring at their little pink shrimpy toes with the urge to nibble, write it down. Put it on paper, along with everything else you’re thinking about them that you think you’ll never forget. Fold it into an envelope, write their name on it and slip it into a young adult novel. Add a lock of hair, or maybe a thin smear of poop. They’ll find it when it’s time.

If you’re parenting a teenager, and it’s offering you a new perspective on your own adolescence, stuff down your pride, take a pen and write a note to your parents. It doesn’t mean they were right and you were wrong. It’s not a concession. You can just explain how you’ve gained insight and that you’ve always loved them — even when they weren’t the boss of you.