Dear open letters everywhere,

PLEASE STOP EXISTING.

Dear lovers of open letters,

If the so-called deep feelings you have for that super random, yet oddly specific person in your life are deep enough, then you would pick up an actual pen and paper and write them in a real letter. No one wants to be tagged on Facebook more than they want to hold a hand-written note between their fingers.

Besides, you can't possibly relate with every word of a letter written by someone else to someone else. Sure, you may have a similar idea, but that other person will never be able to impact the person you're thinking of as well as you can. If you're truly grateful for someone's existence, have the decency to form your own sentences toward them.

Not only do they not accurately depict exactly what you ought to say, but the mere "open" aspect makes them so much less meaningful. Have you ever received a birthday card that made you tear up or a love letter that gave you butterflies? The reason those emotions were so strong is because the note itself was intimately shared between two specific people. A pre-written card or letter would never have impacted you so strongly.

I think our generation struggles with the desire for close community and the desire to publicly display affection. Believe it or not, these two things CAN co-exist. However, they simply don't exist online. If you want these things in your life, you need to seek them out in face-to-face relationships, not online.

Don't hide behind the vagueness of someone else's words. Think for yourself. Express those thoughts to the person you love and admire. Don't trade genuine affection for a cheap digital substitute. It will never satisfy the relational desires we humans have.

So write someone a letter this week. It doesn't matter to whom you write it, just write one. It will likely make that person's week infinitely better. Be it a family member, friend, significant other, or appreciated staff member, take a few minutes out of your day to bless another human.

Sincerely,

A lover of hand-written letters