Facebook Post by Rabbi Perlin in the Time of Coronavirus (4/23/2020)
Thursday Post 4.23.20 — Four Love Stamps Left
by Rabbi Amy R. Perlin, D.D.
I only have four LOVE stamps left and that is a good thing. We have other stamps and we can always order more. I believe in “snail mail” and I am doing my part to keep the USPS in business. I have enough cards and stationery to last for a decade. It is one of the many things I stockpile, in case there is an international shortage. (Don’t laugh…some of my other stockpiles have really come in handy!)
Email is great and so are messages, but there really is nothing like opening the mailbox and finding a letter or card from someone who cares. That connection is priceless. It is a virtual hug in an envelope. It is a way to say, “you matter to me,” that can be held, and hugged, and saved. And history has shown the value and power of real mail.
This summer, we visited the Huntington Museum in Pasadena, California multiple times. There is something powerful is seeing the correspondence of famous scientists and historical luminaries up close. Their handwriting and words transport you to another place and time. You feel a connection that couldn’t possibly exist in any other way. They have left a piece of themselves, for as long as someone is willing to save it. And digitizing may preserve it, but is just not the same thing.
I spent all of last week, going through old letters and correspondence. I found all my college acceptance letters, and every card I received when each of my boys were born. I reread thank you notes from congregants I only vaguely remember from before I got to TBS, and found a letter from our favorite aunt from just before she died, and some from professors who are no longer on this earth. When I left TBS, my beloved assistant went through all of our temple files for me. The only thing I wanted were the thank you notes. She packed them up in plastic boxes that say, “for your rocking chair,” with the graphic of the rocker to remind me that the chair is on the horizon. I intend to reread all of them someday and then, perhaps put them in the archives with the rest of my papers. Those notes are a historical record of my life in a way no saved sermon could be, for touching a life and saying “thank you” are legacies of the heart. Oh, and did I tell you I have every card Gary has ever given me?
In the late 80’s, AT&T had a commercial “Reach out and touch someone.” That phrase has been a guide throughout my life. We never know what that act of caring means to the recipient, but I can tell you it makes a difference. I never posted on Facebook like this until the pandemic, and the plan is to stop writing when the imposed quarantine is over. For now, I get up each day to reach out and touch those who need it, for as long as our lives are in a suspended reality. And as many times a day as I can, I put LOVE stamps on envelopes to let people know I care.
When all the LOVE stamps are gone, the love will still be coming in the mail and here on Facebook. Because there is no shortage of love. The shelves of your heart are stocked to capacity, and get restocked every time that love is acknowledged or reciprocated. So, when love is all we have to share in a time of social distancing, think about sending a letter. You’ll be glad you did.
