seen from Saudi Arabia
seen from Mexico
seen from United States
seen from Czechia
seen from Germany
seen from Netherlands
seen from Germany
seen from Germany
seen from France
seen from United Kingdom
seen from United States
seen from Netherlands
seen from United Kingdom
seen from Netherlands
seen from Ireland
seen from Poland
seen from United States
seen from United Kingdom
seen from United States
seen from Netherlands
It's Better to Give...
It’s Better to Give…
This time of year we begin reflecting on the last several months, some are stressing out over holiday to-dos while others are avoiding their holiday lists. However, much of what we find ourselves busy doing this time of year won’t be remembered two weeks from now. We, understandably, get caught up in the momentum of doing. It happens to all us from time to time. We lose focus on the most…
View On WordPress
Spreading Love Through Letters
It’s the time of the year where we’re a little more loving. A little more present in spending time with loved ones. A little more keen to do things for others out of kindness. But even with all of this, there are still people who have a tough time during the holidays.
I always think to myself, how can I spread a little more happiness outside of me and all those who surround me. One of the ways I love doing this is through love letter requests from More Love Letters. They recently kicked off their 12 Days of Love Letter Writing campaign and I’m so excited to be taking part of it again. To see past posts you can see them here and here.
I would love for you to join me by writing love letters to the MML requests too! The 12 Days of Love Letter Writing is a perfect way for you to show up this season and help people in need around the world. Grab your friends or classmates, kids or students, and rally together to bring some goodwill into the world this December. All you need is some stationery and a few stamps. It’s really simple.
Today’s request is for Neely. A friend of Neely’s contacted MLL and shared part of her story with them. She wrote:
“My friend Neely has been on a journey of growth and acceptance for the last year. In May of 2017, the boy that she had fallen in love with and thought she would someday marry, Austin, fell asleep and never woke up. He was twenty-two years old and his heart just stopped for no known medical reason. Before Austin, there had been men in the past who used their power and authority to mentally and physically abuse Neely. She saw Austin as her saving grace and redemption from those who had hurt her. When she lost him she also viewed it as losing her chance for redemption. For a while, Neely was in a dark place and just going through the motions of life. But she is writing her way through grief. Her love language is words of affirmation and I thought that we could write her love letters and words of encouragement as she embarks on the scary process of opening herself up and becoming vulnerable through her own writing.”
Join us in penning letters to Neely as she bravely faces the world without someone she loves.
PLEASE SEND ALL LOVE LETTERS TO:
Neely’s bundle
℅ Jenna P.
2550 3rd ave Apt 109
Seattle, WA 98121
USA
LETTERS MUST BE POSTMARKED BY DECEMBER 20, 2018
If you want to keep following along for the remaining days go here.
Catching up on my love letters! #twnmll #12daysofletterwriting #12daysmll #moreloveletters #handwritten #imadethis #sharethelove #illustration #snailmail
12 Days of Love Letters
Words are powerful.
They convey emotion, empathy, compassion – or just the opposite. They allow us to communicate across countries and continents. They hold the power to tear others down, or build them up to the highest of heights.
Words have become an outlet for me. Whether it’s been a big move, a hard day, or a lesson learned – words have helped me process and share the good, the bad, the…
View On WordPress
“Hello Friend” I’m Here for You
Have you ever read something that just hit home as soon as you read it? Even if what you’re reading hasn’t been your own experience but somehow you can relate? That’s what happened to me as I prepared for the 12 Days of Love Letter Writing campaign.
On Monday, The World Needs More Love Letters rolled out its biggest, grandest, most festive love letter writing campaign of the year! And it’s going all the way until the 15th of this month. For the last six years, they’ve been putting a bow on the holiday season by rolling out 12 letter requests over a span of 12 days.
That’s no joke… 12 days, 12 letter requests, and a whole lot of holiday loving. The 12 Days of Love Letter Writing is a perfect way to show up this season and help people in need around the world.
As a blogger, I committed to writing a post once during this campaign and I’m so excited to do it again since 2015. Today’s letter request is for the students of REAL School.
The middle school students at REAL School require structured therapeutic school-based support and are at-risk in areas of academic achievement, emotional, and behavioral development. A lot them are also dealing with problems at home and in their communities. Leading to trauma, violence, abuse, and even mental health disorders.
Most of these students and their families lack resources and exposure outside of their communities. And as research has shown, these disconnections oftentimes lead to struggles of incarceration, homelessness, difficulty keeping a job, poverty, lack of health insurance, substance abuse, and depression.
In the current program, there are 6 12-14-year-old boys. They’re a creative, enthusiastic, joyful, athletic, outspoken bunch who love the arts, sports and learning about others. With limitations, their curiosities can’t always be fed, but that’s why we’re here. Let’s help them realize their capabilities against all odds by writing letters to them during this holiday season!
This letter request, in particular, hit home because I understand and have seen what the lack of resources and various forms of limitations does to people. Especially around this age group. When you’re this young you’re starting to form an identity. Your own identity. And if that’s not hard as it is already, when you throw in your community’s and your family’s expectations, the pressure can reach an all-time high.
What I wrote in my letter to these students at REAL School is to stand their ground while taking others’ insights into account. That they’re never alone. They’re 100% capable of overcoming anything. To never let their struggles define them, but to see them as part of their beautiful story. To never doubt themselves. To allow their curiosity to take them to unimaginable places and creativity to open doors that they never knew would open for them. To never let anyone or anything get in the way of their dreams because their gifts, talents, and energies are needed in this world. They’re needed in this world.
Help us spread encouragement, motivation, and love to this amazing group of boys. All you need is some stationery and a few stamps to start your writing.
Please address your letters to these students, “Dear Students.”
PLEASE MAIL THEIR LOVE LETTERS BY DECEMBER 20 TO:
Students of REAL School
℅ Elizabeth L.
12 S. Stafford Avenue Apt. A,
Richmond, VA 23220
USA
Want to keep writing for the remainder of this 12 Days of Letter Writing campaign? Check back here every day until the 15th!
All I Want For Christmas Is...
a bundle of love letters.
Here’s the deal: I think we underestimate the power of the simplest things.
We turn “love” and “acts of kindness” into grandiose visions, like they should be fit for the next viral Buzzfeed video. Or we wrap them up in shiny idealism and are afraid to mess them up with our ordinary hands.
But in reality, you don’t have to do something huge to make a difference.
Sometimes all it takes to change someone’s life is as simple as a letter.
A handwritten note that tells a person they were thought of, and they were important enough for you to pour time and creativity and heart into syllables that might lift their spirits right at the moment when they are feeling most alone.
Words are powerful that way.
Tonight, some girlfriends joined me for a Christmas party centered on scripting notes of hope & love to hurting souls around the globe.
If the name “More Love Letters” is not on your radar, then do yourself + the world a favor, and get yoself over to the MLL website, stat. For more on the 12 Days of Love Letter Writing campaign, see here.
The heart + soul of the organization is simply this: people need love letters. So we need to write them.
Oftentimes, I hold back from doing “good things” because I feel like my efforts are too small and feeble to matter. But here’s the honest truth: no act of love is ever insignificant.
That? Is our simple, ordinary, unfancy beginnings tonight. Not much to look at. Certainly wouldn’t win any awards for branding savvy. Not likely to get many likes on instagram.
But you know what? It’s real. And that’s all we ever need from each other: less fake personas, more true heart. Less style, more reality. Less performance, more love.
If you’ve held back from wading into these waters because you feel inadequate, then darling, hear me on this: we don’t need you fancy. We just need you real and present.
And your love and kindness in showing up turns an ordinary offering into a gift of grace.
To quote Helena Bonham Carter’s take on the Fairy Godmother:
“What is a bowl of milk? Nothing. But, kindness makes it everything.”
The 12 Days of Christmas Love Letter writing campaign is nearly over. But the needs and the letters are not. Don’t feel like you missed the bandwagon. The party’s just getting started.
And you’re invited.
Love + a pen + a card is all that’s required.
You in?
On the Road to Greatness There’s Love
Buried under a mountain of warm fuzzy covers, the smell of coffee first thing in the morning, seeing a person you love just being them, and hearing a baby’s first laugh, are just some of the things that comes to my mind when thinking about the word love.
It’s a word that is often felt intensely but not expressed enough. And in a world that is lacking the love that it’s capable of having and giving to others, finding a community that pours out more selfless love than you could ever imagine, is more than just a bonus in life. It’s like arriving home after an unimaginably long trip that you’ve been on, and finally exhaling a sigh of relief because you’ve entered your comfort zone again.
The organization More Love Letters (MLL) is the community that is exuding so much selfless love. I found MLL, or the founder Hannah Brencher first, a few years ago through good ol’ web surfing and I’ve been in love ever since.
Through the power of pen, paper, the post office, and “LOVE. Pure, old-fashioned, never goes out of style Love. Ridiculous, oozing, cannot pack this thang into 140-characters kind of love. Fearless, bold, unstoppable love.” MLL has touched the lives of countless of people with Love Letter Requests.
If you love writing, spreading some encouraging words to someone in need of them, and have a feeling that letters through snail mail are still a really important form of communication, then this is definitely in your interest zone. Love Letter Requests are posted on the MLL site with the name of recipients, their story, and the address where their bundle of letters goes to. And anyone can send a letter.
For this holiday season, MLL has once again started their 12 Days of Love Letter Writing campaign (December 7th - December 18th). When Hannah asked a roundup of bloggers like myself, if we would like to take part in this campaign, I couldn’t turn it down. I picked my day of the Love Letter Request to host on my blog and here I am. Grateful to be a part of it and so excited to be sharing my story of writing a letter to an 11-year-old girl named, Eliana.
The Love Letter Request goes like this:
Eliana is only 11 years old and has lived with a debilitating and life threatening lung disease called pulmonary hypertension (or PH high blood pressure on the lungs) her entire life. Because of PH she is unable to participate in any sports, she's unable to run and play like other kids her age. PH causes extreme breathlessness and fatigue and chest pain with little exertion. She has to use a mobility scooter most the time because sometimes even walking from one end of a room to another is too much for her. She has undergone many many surgeries in her young life and has had many hospital stays. Through it all she remains positive and continues to shine a light wherever she goes. She wasn't expected to see her first birthday because she was so sick as a baby. Most PH patients don't live much longer after 5 years of being diagnosed but Eliana continues to defy the odds everyday. Eliana's name means=my God answers! Grab your favorite stationery to send Eliana and extra ray of sunshine today!
Reading this just made me want to hug her in some way or another but since I technically can’t, I tried to put all the words I could think of in the letter to her.
Dear Eliana,
I want to start off by saying that you are a blessing beyond explanation. Continue to shine your light because even though I don’t personally know you, you’re somehow radiating that light that you have by me just writing this letter to you.
Shine and shine on, because others might need that spark that you give, shine on because you’re able to continue with your positivity no matter what life has thrown your way and shine on because you are an amazing example to others who are battling with things that are out of their control.
I wish you nothing but happiness, love and all the best wishes that I could throw your way.
I’m crossing my fingers that this letter will be impactful for Eliana to continue going strong no matter the obstacles she faces. I hope this also warms your heart because I have some good news for you. You can join this campaign and write a letter to her too!! Here are the deets:
Pull out your favorite stationary and write your little hearts away.
Snap pictures of your stationary, your letter or anything else, and share on social media by tagging More Love Letters @moreloveletters with the hashtag #12DaysMLL.
Once you’re done with all of that put your letter in its envelope, smack a stamp on the front, and seal it to go straight to the mailbox for Eliana before the 12 days are up:
Eliana’s bundle
℅ Chris C.
1628 Montara Dr
Los Lunas, NM 87031
USA
Help me and MLL bring Eliana some sunshine during this holiday season. You don’t have to be a blogger or a writer, in fact, you just have to be someone who wants to encourage, help and most of all spread love.
Discovered moreloveletters.com today and decided to write a letter for one of the bundle requests, writing to a teenage girl who needs a little extra love. #mll #moreloveletters #12DaysMLL
