Resource Receiving Mail

[CoalmineCanary]

So I met this guy at the hospital last month. He's an older, recovering, crack addict. We had really good conversations. Upon my discharge he gave me his address and said he wanted to send me a card. I almost cried. Maintaining composure when you're desperately trying to leave the hospital is difficult.

But my question is, do people still look forward to receiving cards and letters through the mail? I realize Covid makes this a little more challenging, but I wonder how much this can help recovery. Do people still hand-write correspondence? We actually talked about pen pals we had as young children.

Do you look forward to receiving correspondence or cards in the mail? Does it brighten your day?
Asking for a friend.

 

[Weather]

I love mail. And I set my kids up with pen pals when the pandemic/lock-downs started and they look forward to it too. My oldest child sends comic book pages (that he draws about "Pizza Man") to his penpal because he's not really a conventional writer. Who doesn't love that someone has taken the time to write something just for you and no one else?

 

[CuddleHug]

Absolutely! I'm not doing it much anymore due to lack of motivation and energy, but among my three closest friends, we usually exchange at least a few letters every year. I'm almost 30, so not the youngest, but I grew up with modern technology and only received letters and cards from my grandparents as a kid.

At some point, I exchanged letters monthly with pen-pals from around the world. The excitement of finding a handwritten letter in my mailbox when I least expect it still makes my heart leap. It's something I will continue to love for the rest of my life.

 

[CoalmineCanary]

Thanks for the positive replies. I'm sending this guy a note of gratitude for making my hospital stay more tolerable. I hope little things like this can help.

 

[GoodPersonEffed]

Are you concerned he'll show up where you live?

 

[CoalmineCanary]

Are you concerned he'll show up where you live?

No, I'm not concerned about him (I try to use discretion) doing something like that. I don't get that feeling from him. Rather, the strongest feeling I felt he expressed was that of regret.

What I do feel is guilty for making a connection when I don't wish to stay much longer. As we met in the hospital, he probably is aware of the ugly parts of my illness but it's still hard to tell someone you just met that you want to leave. Maybe it could be helpful for both of us. I don't know. I figure I don't have much to lose at this point and I'm willing to take the risk to form a friendship but still feel it's unfair to him as I hope to leave soon.
TL;DR
I don't want to stay so I don't want to form a new friendship because I feel that it is unfair to the other person but I still hope it will brighten his day to receive a note of thanks in the mail so I'm going to send one after the positive responses I got here. Thanks guys.