It started at the end of my senior year. The last few weeks of high school were a whirlwind of yearbook signings, thank you notes, and goodbye letters. I spent hours scribbling out memories, hopes for the future, and words of encouragement… and I loved it.

Now, in college, I discovered the wonders of the postal service and I send my friends postcards from every new place I go. I never say anything of importance, but I love the feeling of dropping a note in the mailbox and waiting for it to get there. The postcards make it feel like maybe my friends and I aren’t impossibly far apart. After all, it only takes two days for most of my mail to arrive and I didn’t even need call them to talk to them.

Handwritten letters also feel more personal. We live in a world where most of our interactions happen online. Nothing distinguishes the texts I receive from one friend to another except the small round picture and name at the top of the chat. Everybody uses the same set of emojis, everybody has the same font, and there is just nothing really unique. Something handwritten, though, is always one of a kind. You can choose the card, the pen color, even the stamp. So much more thought goes into writing letter than just clicking on the next word your phone thinks you should use.

I love getting handwritten letters as much as I like sending them. Handwriting is like someone’s voice; it’s unique only to them. Seeing their thoughts scribbled out on a page feels so raw. There is no spell check, and it’s easy to see where they went back and inserted a new word or two. It’s almost like I can hear my friend talking through their handwriting.

That being said, it is called snail-mail for a reason. I still text and Snapchat my friends what I’m doing on a daily basis, but next time you see a postcard at the checkout line, pick it up and send it. You might just enjoy it more than you think.