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Christmas time is the best time to get in touch. I sent out about 32 cards, they go up every year. I only get maybe half back, but that's okay with me.
I have not normally used Christmas cards as a way to update people on our lives. I've done this some, but not recently. I always liked receiving cards, and I've enjoyed choosing my own to send. But after years of receiving virtually none in return I decided that it wasn't that important to anyone else, and therefore, perhaps it is not important to me. Certainly not enough to purchase, address and send them during a time when time is short anyway.
The OP is using cards as way to re engage with old friends. The obvious way to do this is with Facebook. I admit though, I am not a Facebook user.
I like getting a few sentences from the people that I do not see thru out the year, and I do the same back. A few sentences, not a novel.
I see no reason to give a next door neighbor a card, especially when i see them many times during the Christmas holidays, but co workers from years ago, friends that have moved out of state, to me, they are the ones I send the card to to let them know they are not forgotten.
Christmas time is the best time to get in touch. I sent out about 32 cards, they go up every year. I only get maybe half back, but that's okay with me.
Same here. If I get back half that's fine. if I don't that's also OK. There are also people who send cards, shall we say, "less religiously". Those are the ones who really seem to appreciate the every year sender crowd.
I don't think anyone here is advocating sending cards to people with whom you have had a serious faling out. That should be rectified at some other time of the year. Not at Christmas.
Nor do I think that anyone is championing over the top, and obnoxious "Family News Letters". Back in the 70s my parents laughed about those pretentious tomes.
But if anyone is not interested enough in a friend to read three paragraphs about their lives, I wonder if a friendship should should still exist - or ever did.
At Christmas it seems people often send cards to those they otherwise don't talk to all year. If you want to reconnect with someone, I think a personal and handwritten notecard at some other time of year would be the way to do it.
If I was on the receiving end of said Christmas card, after I read it and thought "thanks for the update", I probably wouldn't give it another thought unless I really desired to reconnect. People whose friendships I value, I don't let just drift apart.
This.
If it's a friendship you cared about and you "drifted apart," you'd put more effort into reconnecting beyond a card and copied letter. The aforementioned would actually make me not want to reconnect with you.
I can tell when folks retire. I often hear from folks I haven't heard from in 7+ years.
In general, I don't answer. I moved to Iowa this year, and I'm not that interested in keeping up long distance relationships with non-family members. I do send birthday and Christmas cards to several of my elderly relatives who are on opposite ends of the country because I know that they really enjoy getting mail.
I've gone from sending out about 25 cards to 9 this year, which is much more doable. I think I'll try to keep it around this number. It's part of my Simplify the Holidays project.
I put my email address on my letter and I have already got five notes from my old friends, via email and they all loved my stock three paragraph letter I sent out to everyone. The cards just arrived in their mail boxes on Saturday.
My mother who is now gone (2010) used to send hundreds of Christmas Cards each year. Each card had a handwritten note with it.
My mom used to keep this huge bowl on her coffee table and we would come over and just love going through it seeing who sent a card and wondering how their families were doing. Of course, those would be the parents of the kids WE grew up with so we would giggle and smile, thinking of some of the crushes we had, never to tell but I'm sure the parents knew!
It was just really fun going through Memory Lane with her; she didn't do that often but it was a fun activity and usually, we'd be alone with her so time to talk and share and then to go in the kitchen and grab the fresh baked cookies!!
My mom never finished on time but continued sending until she was done - around January 10th.
I always wanted to do this before my parents passed away but one of their friends did it -
The mother and father were pictured in the middle of the card with their address underneath the picture and as you opened the card, on one side was one child of this mother & father with their family and their names and addresses underneath; on the other side, the same thing - it was a wonderful way to connect and "see" the whole family especially when so many have had to move away.
Then, you had their addresses for the next year or when you wanted to keep in touch!
I used to send out Christmas cards because it was something I enjoyed. Selecting a pretty card, printing coordinating labels and writing a message in coordinating ink. And then the pretty Christmas stamps. I put a lot of heart in my Christmas cards. And I typically received an equal amount to what I sent out.
One year, time got away from me and I wasn't able to send Christmas cards. That year, I received only one or two cards. So I thought "Were they sending me cards only because I sent them one?"
I put a lot of time, effort and considerable expense into my Christmas cards, and I felt like it wasn't appreciated so I stopped. I still get a few cards from friends, but they are mostly the non-personal, photo montage, printed cards from shutterfly (or someplace similar).
Sadly, I've had the same experience. Being an "artsy" and nostalgic sort of person, I've always enjoyed the ritual of sending a beautiful card, with caligraphy and color coordinated stamps, envelopes, etc. But I've noticed a significant decrease in cards over the past five years or so.
It's so sad to see that lovely tradition falling by the wayside.
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