By: Sonora Slater
Driving through the endless open fields of Montana with all six members of my family piled into a car, I gaped out the window at the wide, blue sky above me. I was a stranger to the state, having grown up all my life in Northern California. As we pulled carefully into a shaded driveway an hour later, a girl with straight black hair ran out to greet us and welcome us into her backyard for a home cooked meal of watermelon and grilled chicken. Technically, I’d never met her — but we had been sending letters back and forth for four years, as pen pals.
Reegan and I first connected when we both submitted slips to join Clubhouse Magazine’s pen pal club, and it was by luck that my family was driving through her small town on our annual family road trip that summer. Since then, she’s also come to California to see one of my dance shows. Now we mostly stay in touch via social media and iMessage. But as convenient as modern technology is, hearing the ding of an incoming text will never beat the unmatched dopamine rush of checking the mailbox as a kid and seeing a letter, addressed to me, and postmarked from what seemed like a distant land.
Her letters made the world feel so much bigger and so much smaller at the same time, as we wrote back and forth about the same sports, pets, and fears of starting high school. This slow-moving form of correspondence, often called snail mail, is just as magical today as it was ten or twenty years ago—but it’s a lot less common.
From 2001 to 2020, the U.S. Postal Service delivery numbers were cut in half, as smartphones took over and digital communication became more prevalent. The paper footprint of mail has largely been traded for text and email. And while we’re probably all okay with junk mail petering out, there are some aspects of personal, handwritten letters that a text or Instagram DM just can’t replace — made possible only by the incredibly interconnected service that is the USPS.
Beyond the whimsy, why should you write letters?
Having a pen pal can be great fun. It’s a great reason to finally use all those stickers that you’ve been hoarding for the perfect moment by adorning your letter and envelope with color. And beyond the fun, letter writing can also be really good for your mental health.
When you write a letter, you’re taking part in a non-screen activity that allows you to express your inner thoughts and feelings without being interrupted or rushed, taking the time to be present and reflect introspectively. Practicing writing in a way that won’t be graded (or judged by your boss and coworkers) is an engaging way to stretch your creativity.
When you’re waiting to receive a letter, you’re retraining yourself to have patience, and leaning away from instant gratification. And when the letter is delivered, you have tangible proof of a human connection—and a glimpse into a life and culture that might be very different from your own.
Studies have shown that writing letters can reduce loneliness and anxiety, and receiving snail mail can combat feelings of depression and hopelessness and boost happiness by giving you something to look forward to.
EDITOR’S TIP: Including a sticker, doodle, bag of your favorite tea, or small piece of paper with a poem or list of book recs inside the envelope with your letter can boost the receiver’s happiness even more.
A long history of snail mail in Davis
If you do postmark a letter in Davis, you’ll be joining quite the long tradition of snail mail in the Putah Creek area. From 1860 to 1861, before a transcontinental telegraph line was completed, or a railroad connecting the east to the west was fully built, men on horseback delivered letters as part of the Pony Express — and part of that route passes through what is now Davis, California.
“The Pony Express came and went before there was a railroad or a place named Davis or some such,” explained John Lofland, UC Davis professor emeritus. “The signs signaling its route through town are an historical fiction. There were no streets for the Express to navigate.”
The signs Lofland refers to are posted on a series of poles throughout a section of downtown Davis. They read “Pony Express Historical Route, next 0.5 mile,” and while the roads they mark were technically not in existence at the time the Express rode through the area, they are a fun way to memorialize a piece of far-back Davis history. If you’re looking for a more specifically placed marker, Lofland says you can stop by Putah Creek Lodge to see a monument to Solano House, a Pony Express station that was used as a rest stop and a place for riders to swap out horses.
These frequent swaps allowed the horseback postmen to maintain an impressive delivery time, with mail traveling almost 250 miles each day, and reaching from Missouri to California in an average of 10 days. Unfortunately, it shut down after only 18 months after the transcontinental telegraph line rendered it obsolete.
Stories from Davis pen pals
I have had a penpal for over 65 years. We have visited each other and now are also Facebook friends. She lives in Japan and wanted to practice English. She taught English for many years. She writes Haiku in English and Japanese and has published several books of Haiku.
— Claire Bradley
I had a penpal in England from about 4th to 9th grade. I remember we had an on-going back & forth about who was cuter/a better singer: Ricky Nelson or Cliff Richard! And we used lots of hand drawn ’emoji-equivalents’ on the envelopes! — L.M. Scott
I had several pen pals when I was young. One was a friend that I grew up with until we both moved away around 4th grade. We started writing back when it cost 8¢ to send a letter! As we studied French and German in junior high and high school, we practiced writing to each other in those languages. — Jody Lusebrink
Introducing The Dirt’s Summer Pen Pal Club!
Feeling inspired to pick up a pen and try to remember how to address a letter? This summer, The Dirt ‘s summer pen pal club will connect people throughout the city, and you’re invited to join! Click here to fill out some basic information about yourself and/or your kids, which we’ll use to match pen-pals. Expect an email back from me (Sonora) with your match!
