Say it with letters<\/p>\n
Stepping into the new year on Sunday President Soeharto kicked
\noff a letter writing campaign. He advised Indonesians to
\nrevitalize the habit of writing letters.<\/p>\n
The presidential appeal has provoked the awareness that the
\npositive habit of letter writing is under threat. Although there
\nhas been no serious survey of the trend, the National Post
\nOffice, which has over the past years significantly improved its
\nservice, reports that it handles only 500 million letters a year.
\nThis means that the average Indonesian, who can now read and
\nwrite, produces only 2.5 letters a year.<\/p>\n
This figure is clearly very low and the government is
\nobviously right to expect that the campaign will motivate every
\nmember of this nation of 190 million people to write at least 50
\nletters every year.<\/p>\n
We regard this campaign as timely because the reality which we
\nare observing at present is not at all a cheery one. Perhaps the
\nproblem is that modernization, albeit certainly bringing many
\nbenefits to our people, has robbed many of us of our old letter
\nwriting habit.<\/p>\n
The growing role of the electronic media in our society and
\nthe rapid development of the telecommunications technology in
\nthis country -- where now almost every district has its own
\ntelephone exchange system -- has pushed the good habit into a
\ndefensive position.<\/p>\n
Important messages can now be passed through the modern
\ntelecommunications system, which works faster. People tend to
\nhave less and less time for writing -- or even reading -- because
\nwatching TV programs is almost irresistible for many people.<\/p>\n
But few realize that communication by telephone calls,
\ntelegrams, or even facsimiles, cannot replace the positive
\nelements of letter writing.<\/p>\n
Rabindranath Tagore, the famed Indian poet and philosopher,
\nwas very much right when he said letters had the power of speech
\nwhich tongues do not possess. \"And therefore when we meet,\" the
\nsage said, \"some parts of our thoughts will remain unuttered from
\nthe want of a great space and silence between us.\"<\/p>\n
It may sound unbelievable but it is true that many lovelorn
\npersons still address letters to Romeo or Juliet, the tragic
\nleading personalities of Shakespeare's famous play. The letters,
\nwhich their writers send to Verona, Italy, where the story is
\nset, usually ask for solutions to their own personal problems.
\nAnd the letters are answered by the people who manage the
\nhistoric site, on behalf of the two legendary figures.<\/p>\n
Through letters one can also maintain the bond of family ties
\nbetter because in them one can fine-tune one's opinions, feelings
\nand sentimental attachments to certain persons or places. A
\nletter can also convey a serious message at length and thereby
\nboost personal relationships.<\/p>\n
Greater still, a letter can be documented and become a
\nhistorical item. Many letters of great historical figures have
\ndisclosed more to us about history than any formal textbooks can.
\nThere are actually so many such letters that we cannot mention
\nthem one by one in this column. Remember, however, that letters
\nsent by Indian leader Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru from his prison to
\nhis daughter Indira Gandhi in the 1930s were compiled into a
\nbook, which relates to us the march of mankind, and particularly
\nthat of the Indian independence movement. Letters also have
\nrevealed that Napoleon Bonaparte had a sentimental side to his
\nnature.<\/p>\n
During this present age of consumerism, in which values have
\ndramatically changed and the sense of beauty has acquired new
\nforms, people tend to be less shy. Thus, letters also help to
\nreveal for future generations the spirit of the times in which
\ntheir forebears lived. Thus, it may not be too much of an
\nexaggeration to say that advising people to resuscitate the
\nletter writing habit is almost tantamount to asking them to try
\nto enjoy the beauty of the voice of the human soul, while
\npreserving tiny but meaningful bits of history for their
\noffspring.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/say-it-with-letters-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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