This is What I Call FUN!

Kandice Boyce Wadsworth, the patient, gracious owner of this delightful shop, clearly has the same love affair with paper that I do.

fbgpapergoods@gmail.com

 

Most of you know that I am currently in Austin, Texas, visiting my daughter and her family. Yesterday they took us on a road trip to Fredericksburg; as we drove into town we passed a store with a sign Paper Goods. Every person in our two cars immediately knew that this was the place Mom/Grandma would want to visit.

Why?

Because I LOVE PAPER!

Just look at these pictures. What you can't tell is that I am practically hyperventilating. [Brown paper bag, please.] I was surrounded by paper goods of all sorts; I was a kid in a candy shop. I asked my husband for X number of dollars, and I would not allow myself to go over this amount--though I have to admit that I was thinking that Valentines Day was the next day, Mother's Day was coming in May, and my birthday is in August...

In the February 2 post--Goal-Setting: Hype or Hurrah?--I talked about adding the Fun Factor and Focus Factor to help me achieve the goals I set for myself. For me, in my March Letter-Writing Month--this is the Fun Factor: finding or creating stationery from delicious papers and hand-crafted art.

Now, that's what I call fun!

In addition, as I bought the paper yesterday, I pictured people who would be blessed by opening their mailboxes to see a tangerine or chocolate-brown envelope with my name in silver ink in the upper left-hand corner.

All that may sound stressful to you, but, for me, this is one of the fun factors in this adventure. I encourage you to find yours.

And now on to the focus factor. We can use February Prep Month to start making a list and gathering the addresses of people we want to write. (No time for this in March! Instead, next month we want to write, write, write!)

Think outside the box; perhaps these will spark some ideas for you.

1. Senior citizens who are sitting alone looking out their windows

2. Those who are grieving a loss

3. Someone who has faithfully provided a service for you

--your beautician

--a waitress at your favorite restaurant

--the woman who never loses your clothes at the dry cleaners

--a teacher who made learning calculus fun

--a pastor or Sunday School teacher who impacted your life

--a neighbor who used to make chocolate chip cookies for you when you were a child

--an aunt who faithfully sent you a birthday card when you were little with a crisp dollar bill enclosed

--a librarian who knew you loved Harry Potter and had the latest edition waiting for you

--the hospice worker who was so kind to your mother during her last days

--a childhood friend you haven’t had contact with since you watched The Brady Bunch together.

--someone who babysat you when you were young and didn’t berate you for crying when your mother left

--your grandchildren who bless you every time you’re with them

--your mailman who drops lovely letters in your mail box in rain, sleet, or gloom of night (OK, your bills too, but that’s not the mailman’s fault).

Now it's your turn. Do you have other ideas of people we could write or send thank-you notes to? We'd love to hear from you. Add a comment below, and help us as we focus this month on creating our list.

So that once March comes, all we'll need is pen, paper, & a stamp.

If you would like to join me in making March Letter-Writing Month, just subscribe by email and you won't miss a pen stroke.