This picture shows the first page of the letter I wrote to my, then in September 1975, girlfriend, Jean. The paper has become yellowish and crispy along the edge. The ink has faded a bit. Yet the emotion of the author, Morris, is even more lively dancing all over the page. The antique atmosphere of this 31 year old paper thickens the writer’s feeling even further. I reckon this effect can only be created by pen and paper.This letter was written on 19-9-1975, the day before the full moon night of mid autumn when the majority of the Chinese community are being busy planning a journey home for a sweet family reunion. Jean was then still in her last year of education study in Kaoshiung, a Southern city of Taiwan, while I was just discharged from the two year military service and was then working in Taipei, Northern city of Taiwan. Being a couple in love and being unable to be together on such a traditional yet romantic day, the author was driven by his emotion and wrote this 3 page long love letter stating how terribly he was missing her.
In the past 31 years, I witnessed the advance of electronic technology in the area of communication. The telex that was an important telecommunication equipment to all offices in 70’s required the typist to make a band with perforated holes first before she could send the message to the destination. Then, a more user friendly machine called fax was invented and commonly used in offices in early 80’s. This tool is still taking its place in most of the offices today but they are not used as often now. Mid 80’s saw the first generation of mobile phone on the road. It was as big and heavy as a 2kg dumbbell. Internet and personal computer made a revolutionary change to the telecommunication from mid 90’s. I am not sure when did the text message begin on the cell phones. Suddenly in 2006 I see everyone including me, the old fellow, are sending text everywhere. A friend of mine sent over 1500 text messages in one month.
With this kind of magic gadget around, people virtually don’t need pen and paper to get their message across. How convenient and speedy it is with the latest technology. But I notice that the more advanced these devises are the less sincerity an intimacy people will get from electronic messages. Do you feel the same receiving a conventional birthday or wedding card from your letter box on the road side and receiving a beautifully decorated e-card with romantic background music through your computer or mobile? What do you think is missing from the electronic format? Isn’t it the caring or sincerity that only pen and paper can convey touches people’s heart more than just the very plain message? That is why a hand-made card with some lines of caring words always wins the recipient’s heart more than a well printed and expensive card with typed message.
Hmm, that’s right, sincerity counts. Yesterday when I planned to scan one of the love letters I wrote for my wife to be included in this posting, I asked my wife to help find them from the storage compartment. I found a girlish blush flew over her face when she passed that bunch of dusty papers to me. I knew that the sincerity fed into those letters via pen and paper in the past 31 years were not just still existing but even more thickened like a vintage wine from many years of storage.
