I have a favor to ask! :D

Hey guys!

I hope your week is going fabulously well!  Or maybe it's not and that's why you are perusing our blog. :)  If that's the case, then thank you!  I appreciate having you here. I have some exciting new things in the works for the blog and I hope you might find one or two that you would love to participate in!

One of the things I've come across as a postcard lover, is accumulating 100's and 100's of blank postcards I've picked up in my travels, from swaps with other people, as gifts. You name it, I've probably received them in that way!  I have so many blank postcards I want to add to my collection, but they're NAKED!    Right?  Oh, the horror.  Blank postcards that have never made a journey through mailboxes or had a stamp adhered to their surface.  Sure, some people prefer to collect blank postcards and that's great! Makes it easier to send them their way! :D But I love them travel weary, with miles under their stamps, excited to show up in my mailbox.

So thinking of that, I have found that I arm in quite a conundrum. Boxes full of postcards, as blank as blank can be?  How ever would I change that? And then it hit me. I should ask our friends and followers! So here I am, guys, I'm here to plead my case and talk some more about my dealio.  If you saw it on Facebook already, no worries, you can skip this post.  I won’t feel bad. :3  Or! Maybe you have a friend who might be interested in participating? Just send this post their way!

Ever thought about sending me a postcard or participating in my project, but didn't know how?  No worries!  Just fill out my Postcard Request Form and I'll send them on their way! How does it work?  You fill out our form and let me know how many cards you'd like, whether you'd like them stamped or not(US only, unfortunately. International has to stamp their own postcards), and then you just wait for them to arrive!  Once the addressed postcards arrive, all you have to do is write on them and drop them in a mailbox to come my way!   I do blog every postcard that comes my way and I love to blog in-depth about the postcards that follow my requests!  With that being said, here are the things I would really love to see written on my postcards!  Here are a few ideas: 

Write a piece of advice (and who it was from/relation to you) you have received, a favorite quote of yours, a favorite book and/or movie, or anything that is important to you. Mini music playlists, authors, places you've visited, parts of your bucket list. Here are some more ideas. 

•Famous Last Words
•80's Song Lyrics
•Favorite Line From A Book
•Who's Your Hero
•Bucket List
•Favorite Vacation Spot
•Most Inspiring Quote/song/book 

I will also be thinking about hosting a small tri-monthly giveaway as a thank you for anyone who has sent us our postcards back!  So be sure to check that little box if you'd like that as an incentive for participating!

If you have any questions, please let me know! I am so excited to send postcards and blog about what I receive back!  

Happy Mailings!

-Jessa

Lewis Carroll's "Alice in Wonderland" and The Fox

One of the best things about postcards, in my honest opinion, is the ability that little piece of paper has to brighten up your day!  Sure, most of the postcards you receive will be something you're looking for or swapped for, but every once in a while, the postcard you see in your mailbox just makes your day!  That's the case for the subject of this fabulous post!  I slid my key into the lock and opened up the little door, and this beauty was sitting on top!

Look at this cute little fox and his adorable chickies!  There are the two that are sleeping, oblivious to the world, the one sitting on top of his furry little orange head like a hat, and the fourth just standing there.  I love them all!  The fox has adorable little feet.  It almost looks like he stepped into sticky mud and it never came off!  Though, I have to say that this little illustration reminds me of a children's story!  Do you see his little teeth?  So cute!

This is such a great quote! I remember reading Alice in Wonderland as a child and it was such a trip, heading down the rabbit hole into the strange new land.  There are quite a few quotes from those writings that we could take note in, but we would agree in saying this is probably one of the most important. "I can't go back to yesterday because I was a different person then." How true is that?  Things happen in our life that aren't always what we want to happen, and we feel, sometimes, that we are in the wrong place at the wrong time and we'd do anything we could to change that.  But the fact of the matter is, we can't.  It's as simple as that.  Not only that, but even if we could, we would change the entire course of the rest of our lives!  Maybe that was meant to happen.  After all, don't they say everything happens for a reason?  I believe that.  Certainly, that doesn't always mean that the things that happened were happy or joyful, but it definitely helped shape us to be the people we are today.  We can't change the past but we can go forward and try to have a happier future!

Have any of you read "Alice in Wonderland"?  Let me know in the comments about your favorite part!

Happy Mailing!

-Jessa

Paris

I just love it when a beautiful postcard shows up in my box!  I've never been to Paris, let alone France, but after this postcard, I  know I'd love to go one day! The Postcard is so beautiful.  The Eiffel Tower lit up, with the dark clouds looking purple behind it.  The bright bridge reflected on the water's surface.  I mean c'mon!  How could that not be beautiful!   I want to go there right now! Has anyone reading this post ever been to Paris?  Let us know what you thought in the comments below!

It's just so pretty.  This is the kind of postcard I could see on a wall, as a piece of art.  But it will definitely look amazing in my Postcard Album.  I also found I loved the stamp when I flipped the postcard over to read what was on the back.

This fabulous stamp is a part of the second series of stamps issued by the Singapore Post.  The definitive stamps exhibit the Republic's past quite succinctly.  It's been aptly named "Vanishing Trades" and is a beautiful depiction of Singapore's trades.  Among the rest of the series are cage makers, kite makers, Chinese calligraphers, and the garland maker, like we have here.  The first series, released in  2013, featured several different designs, in which dairy man, kachang puteh seller, and beaded slippers maker were included.   These stamp series are a part of the nation's rich cultural heritage and bear homage to the building and growing of Singapore's past.  I greatly enjoyed this beautiful stamp and learning more about it's origin.   Have you seen any of the others in the series?

Last, but certainly not least, we come to the quote that was inscribed on the back.  

"The best way to pay for a lovely moment is to enjoy it." - Richard Bach

This quote is so true.  It makes me think of when someone close to you plans a special outing or makes you something special.  They shouldn't require the same action in return.  The best way to think them is to appreciate the moment and everything they did for you to get to that point.   It feels like no one really appreciates the time and effort it takes to do some these favors these days.   We need to remember to be more appreciative of the moments around us and the time others might put in.  We know that sometimes we take things for granted, even when we try not to.

Just some things to keep in mind!  Let me know what you thought of the postcard!

Happy Mailing!

-Jessa

Happiness is...Mondays! #1

Hello Hello!!

 For most people, students and workers alike, Monday isn't the best day of the week. You're coming off of a weekend that was hopefully full of fun times and good friends, but more often than not, it was a little break from the ho-hum doldrums of the rest of the week. So why not try to cheer ourselves up? That's my plan with the new Monday themed posts! 

 "Wait, jump back. What's a themed post?" You're asking, right? No worries, I was about to get to that. At Through The Letterbox, I want to have a way to get people to interact with the blog and to have a chance to relate to the postcards I am posting! Quite a few of you guys are on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, and most of these have themed hashtags for the week! Yeah, I decided to join in on the fun. ;) Today was the perfect day to start! So, every Monday(we'll, hopefully every Monday :3), I'll have a blog post that revolves around the theme of "Happiness is..." and things that make us happy! I picked Monday because someone, somewhere, might need a pick me up! I hope you'll be able to participate or at least have a desire to participate with us! Keep on reading to see our first #HappinessisMondaysTTLB postcard!

Seriously,  How cute is this little guy?  I had a Shetland pony growing up and man, was he a little stinker!  But when they were good, they were soooo good. I absolutely love this postcard!  Let's see what the back says!

Happiness is...

• A Mailbox full with happy mail.
• My daughter (2.5 years) sing today that she loves me.
• Feeling kicks from the baby. I'm 26 weeks pregnant.
• Make people smile.
• Writing postcards with a cup of tea.

How fun is this postcard! These are such great things that make this sender happy. I know I can definitely agree with a few of them!  Having a mailbox full of happy mail is definitely a given for a happy maker!  I always get sad when there's nothing more than bills or the free inserts they include in the newspaper!  Like, seriously.  Who wants bills and free inserts?!  Not me! That's for sure. I'd much rather have cute decorated postcards that scream " Read me! Read me!" or penpal letters with the fun writing and the washi tape.  This kind of leads to another of the listed happy makers.  "Making people smile."  I know I've been getting the mail out of my box and the smile on my face has caught the attention of the clerks behind the counter.  They always want to see the mail that happened to make me so happy.  I love having the chance to share the postcards with other people!  

One of the other things listed on here was "writing postcards with a cup of tea."  I've never really done that at home, but I have stopped at my local coffee shops with blank postcards in hand, sipping a large glass of iced tea as I write to my friends.  But I've never drank hot tea or drank tea at my house while writing.  Have any of you?  I can definitely imagine how that would bring happiness to our lives!

What in particular makes you happy?  Can you relate to any of the listed from this postcard?  Let me know in the comments!   Follow if you haven't already to keep up with my posts and postcards or sign up for email in the sidebar!

Happy Mailing!

-Jessa

Indonesia on A Map

The postcard that comes to me today hails from the beautiful lands of Indonesia.  Though I've never been, I have seen photos that are absolutely beautiful and begging me to come visit.  Not so strangely enough, I can't afford a trip to Indonesia anytime soon but I can receive postcards from wonderful people from Indonesia, as well as all over the world.

This postcard is one of my favorite maps that I've received of yet.  It's so colorful and pretty and fun!  All of the different islands and information on the postcard was super informative!  One of my favorite things about receiving all these different postcards is all the learning I accomplish.  I never knew that there are 17, 508 islands that encompass the Republic of Indonesia, or that only 6,000 of which are inhabited.  Who knew?  They have 150 active volcanoes and 328,000 species of plants and animals.  They also have 300 distinct ethnic groups and 742 different languages and dialects!  How amazing! Just take a look at the postcard and see for myself how beautiful it is!

The quote on the back of the postcard was a perfect choice!  The sender even suggested coming to visit, so the whole thing was travel related! Plus, her handwriting was fabulous.  There wasn't one thing I didn't like about this postcard.

"The world is a book & those who do not travel read only one page."

This quote is so true and really resonates with me, being an avid book reader.   There is just something about getting out there and experiencing everything around you!  Whether it's only a few miles from your home or a thousand miles, getting out there and seeing what the world has to offer is important and so much fun.  So take a step outside and experience something new, Traveled somewhere new recently?  I would love to hear about it!  Let me know in the comments!

Happy mailings!

-Jessa

Lookie! A Surprise! #1

I got a surprise postcard in the mail the other day.  I was definitely not expecting it!  I am not sure where it came from, or even who, but I am loving it!  I love postcards that I am not expecting!  They are just so much fun.  Surprise mail in the box?  Yes please. :)

I'm not usually one for art, sometimes the pieces get too complicated, you know?  But this postcard is absolutely beautiful.  It's a watercolor painting of Little Harbor Dock, by Leilani Havens, of Muscongus Island, Maine.  The postcard is so pretty and just serene.  I've always loved watercolors and this is a prime example.  Doesn't it just look like a place you just want to take a step into and walk down the dock to the waterfront?  I know I do!  So peaceful and quiet. 

The quote I received on the back of the postcard was pretty great.  It's definitely one of those quotes that has the potential to reach deep down inside of you and start something great.  Sometimes I think too many people are superficial and they don't care about what actually matters outside of themselves.  That sounds harsh, I  know, but just taking a walk outside or reading some tweets on Twitter, and I sometimes feel that there isn’t a big awareness of the bigger picture, you know?  

"Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart."

-Wordsworth

I know this quote touched me, does it touch you?  How does this quote make you feel?  Let us know in a comment! Or even tell us a quote that has touched you in some way and why.  I love to hear from my readers!

Happy Mailings!

-Jessa

New Jersey's Here: James Dean & Liebe Besiegt Alles

Today's blog post inspiration comes to us from New Jersey!   I was blessed with two postcards coming in from the East Coast, a place I've never been but would like to go.  Especially after seeing what these two postcards had to offer!  The postcards were great, the stamps were fun, and the quotes were even better!  New Jersey is known for it’s coastal waters, enthusiastic people, and being the "Diner Capital of the World".  Also, for all you soup lovers out there, New Jersey is the fabulous place where Campbell's Soup was created!  Heck yeah! How are you not wanting to jump on a plane and head out there right now?  I know I am! Ok, instead of coming up with more and more reasons to visit New Jersey, let's get along with these postcards. :D

The lovely quote on the back of this postcard is one I've heard often but have always loved.

"Dream as if you'll live forever. Live as if you'll die today."

-James Dean

 How many of our readers have heard this quote before?  It's pretty famous, the words from a well known celebrity who lived out his own words.  I actually think about this quote often and I can't tell you how happy I am that it came in on a postcard. There are so many people in this world who live life safely.  They don't take risks when it could be beneficial to them.  I used to be one of those people.  I would dream like there was no tomorrow, quite like I was going to live forever.  But I lived very carefully. I wasn't happy because I wasn't doing anything I dreamed about.  All I did were things that I knew I had to do and I knew were completely safe.  As popular as this quote is, I found it be inspirational and kind of a kick in the seat of my pants.  I needed to stop doing things so carefully and living vicariously through other people! What a change it has been to my life!  I can't say everything has been perfect, because, let's face it, I make mistakes.  But I've been happier and I'd like to challenge my readers to take a step in that same direction if they haven't already.  Is there something you've wanted to do but haven't yet?  Because you might be scared or unsure?  Pick something small, it doesn't have to be big, and do it!  Try that bold lipstick or loudly printed dress.  Ask that girl out at the coffee shop you've seen a couple of times or change that hairstyle.  Just take a step of something you might have wanted to do but haven't because of a fear.  Try it out and see how it feels.  Let me know if you have previously or are going to! I'd love to hear what you guys have to say!

This lovely little postcard came with a quote I have heard in English, but I haven't ever heard it in German as I did this time.

"Liebe Besiegt Alles"

Love conquers all.

I love this quote.  It's the perfect tie in for our "Love Rules" segment I am getting ready to launch on the blog.  Our lovely postcard sender loved the quote too, she has it tattooed!  It's such a romantic quote for those of us who love love. :3 I think I kind of want to collect postcards with "Love conquers all." translated into as many different languages as possible.  Think you can help me with that?  Head on over to our Postcard Submission page and let me know where you're from and how you'd like to help!

These two postcards were a fun and welcome addition to my mailbox and I can't thank the sender enough!  Hope you enjoyed them!  Let us know what you think or share!  

Happy Mailings!

-Jessa