the converse shoe box.

Grateful for: a friend taking time to tell me he likes my blog. I love it when real life friends take time to tell me that they read it, and even more, like it.

Quote love: "A letter is always better than a phone call. People write things in letters they would never say in person. They permit themselves to write down feelings and observations using emotional syntax far more intimate and powerful than speech will allow."Alice Steinbach.

(pssst: do you see my new watermark?)

If you've sent me a letter in the past year, chances are I kept it. They're tucked away in a Converse shoe box underneath my bed. I don't open it nearly often enough; likely because I received most of them during a time I miss enough without a reminder.

The box is full. Its shape won't allow the letters to lay down flat, they have to stand up, some of them tall enough to push the lid permanently open. Even so, it's perfect.

The letters come from all over, from everyone.

There are the letters I received from a church in Florida. They were sponsoring the event I was attending in the UAE, and when I arrived to my room the first night, I found a whole stack of letters from college students. My favorite: "and yes, I did mean to write this upside down, haha."

I was a mess heading home from church the Sunday I left for the Middle East. Already crying because of goodbyes, my mom handed me a stack off letters from Sara, one of our youth group leaders. I spaced them out, saving them so they lasted the entire summer.

This one made me cry. It was Tuesday night, and I had just opened my suitcase in my home in the Middle East. It was sitting on top; I assume my mom smuggled it in there during the final stages of packing. When I saw it, I was exhausted and overwhelmed, and I missed my family. Reading the letter felt like some part of home.

There's the hugely encouraging letter from my best friend's dad, 

the thank-you notes from my pastor's wife, 

the welcome home cards I received in August, 

the letters of support and blessing before I left,

the huge stack from my best friend, (and no, my name isn't spelled Kaite :)

And my most recent favorite, my first letter from my new penpal.

There's so much inside that one little box. So much there saying people love me, care about me, are praying for me. Most of them have heavy memories associated with the Middle East this summer, and reading them brings back so many memories.

On a less nostalgic note, I just realized today that approximately eight people on campus know that I'm a highschooler....this could be fun while it lasts. :)

What's been up with you? Anything that makes you feel nostalgic or brings back memories?