Chapter 1 What''s so special about letters? It''s hard to find anyone who doesn''t like letters. We feel a thrill when we receive them. One of their charms is that we can''t see what''s inside right away: there''s an anticipation in unsealing the mysteries held within. Letters often contain words of affirmation--I say "often" because there are also, of course, belligerent letters and ones littered with cruel words. Personally, I am very glad that the majority I''ve received have made me laugh or moved me to tears. One thing they''ve taught me is how the sender perceives me. This is something incredibly precious. More than once, a letter from someone close to me has revealed something I never knew about myself.

This has happened so many times that I wonder whether I''ve now become conditioned to respond with excitement. Letters convey with clarity feelings that lie beneath the surface. For those of you who normally find it hard to express emotions, a letter can help you delve a little deeper. Whenever I steal glances at the letter writers in our shop, my heart warms. I''m beginning to think that our bodies are programmed to hunch over whenever we open up about how we truly feel. A posture of concentration. A head tilted deep in thought. And for those readers who have no idea what to write at all, I''d like to say that the bar is not as high as you''d think.

Even a short note tucked into a lunch box can transform someone''s day and let them know you''re thinking of them. All of these things make the scene of letter writing so beautiful. Letters are slow: they command a gentler pace and don''t deliver instant gratification in the same way as a text or social media post. There are lots of things to prepare before composing one. You need paper of an appropriate size, suitable writing materials, a space in which you can concentrate, and more than anything else: time. In truth, it takes only around twenty to thirty minutes to fill a sheet of paper. The actual time spent sitting at a desk isn''t all that long, yet with the hectic nature of modern life, there is always a more urgent task that ends up getting in the way. Relinquishing that brief stretch of time is the hardest thing to do.

Conversely, if someone has sent me a letter, this means they have put everything else to one side and devoted that time to me. This is why the arrival of a letter never fails to put a smile on my face. The feeling arrives before I''ve even opened the envelope--whether it was one hour or ten minutes, someone has used their precious time to create something just for me. Letters are truly unique: something only the sender could have come up with. I''m in awe of the motivation and discipline of people who send them regularly. The content changes depending on who the letter is for, and so you cannot simply copy and paste what someone else has written. You must use your own words. The message must be for that person only.

It''s this distinctive aspect of letters that gets us so excited. People tend to think there''s something "special" about those who send letters. We assume that they are more in touch with their emotions or that they''re big into writing itself. But that''s not necessarily the case for our customers. They are so diverse--it''s impossible to lump them into a single category. The customer who''s smart and well presented, the one who shuffles sheepishly through the door and takes a quiet look around, the customer with a charming and hearty laugh, another who throws me questions without reserve, the one wearing earphones who chooses letter paper that perfectly matches their own style, the customer dressed like they''ve just rolled out of bed, the one who''s about to quit their job and comes to buy letters for their colleagues, another who draws attention with their brightly colored hair . Everyone writes letters for different reasons. If there''s one thing my customers share, however, it''s the look in their eyes as they select paper and envelopes.

In the search for something beautiful, they seem so peaceful. Seeing this always reminds me that letter writers are, in the end, people who love those around them. That which takes longer to arrive stays longer in the heart. I think that''s why we turn to letters when we want people to remember us. Unlike the acts of instant messaging or emailing, the letter is an elegant human method of communication that can''t be done at the click of a button and doesn''t disappear. Though the visible end product may be a single sheet of paper, the hidden value of a letter lies in how it allows us to discover and experience a whole spectrum of emotions, through which we receive endless support, encouragement, and compassion.