Letters

I am weird in more ways than one.

Its surprising how at times I cannot hold conversations. I cannot indulge in small talk. If you happen to ask me about my opinion on something- say, curtains or wallpaper or if the orange kurta matches your pink chappals, my answer would most probably be: Smile, nod, and say "Hmmmm...Nice!". In my head I'll be in a panic, looking for the nearest exit.

But its strange how I manage to express myself through letters and writing.
I love writing and receiving letters. Even if they're absolute trash, I love receiving stamped enveloped addressed for me. It's something that's exclusively mine, I don't have to share it with anyone.

The art of letter writing may be dying. 96.4% of the mail you receive are either bank statements, credit card bills, phone bills, magazine subscriptions etc. (Statistics courtesy the National Institute of Postal & Telegraphic Studies) If you're lucky, you may get a legal notice or two. So mail isn't something people look forward to. They look at it with dread and indifference.

I think letters are beautiful. They say things you  cannot verbally express. Nothing can be more personal than a letter for you. When I moved from Ahmedabad to Mumbai I wrote a dozen letters to Anu and Debo, even though we had cellphones and would talk to each other every other week. And they wrote back. When I am at fault but I cannot verbally apologize, I write a letter.  I've been consistently writing letters (since the 4th grade) every year for Raksha Bandhan. I have 11 brothers (all cousins and some extended family) and each brother, gets their own addressed letter.

The Rakhi letters I send have the same format :
1. Pleasantries
2. Hoping the recipient is fine
3. Stating the main purpose of the letter: "On the occasion of Rakshabandhan, Rati and I are sending you Rakhis...."
4. Recent personal developments in the letter writer's life
5. Recent Rati-isms that are letter worthy
6. Short discussion of any news about the recipient that you've recently heard of.
7. Giving the writer's love and regards to the receiver's family
8. Sending love and regards from the writer's family's to the recipient family
9. Hoping to see / hear from the recipient soon
10. Lots of love

Whew. That's a lot of work. And structuring the entire letter to different people, according to their ages and also keeping in mind their sense of humor is what makes each letter different. And of course adding a personal touch to every letter- a smiley or a cartoon (if there is space left on the page, that is!)
I usually don't realize its Rakhi till i see the rakhi stalls on the road and ads in the newspapers, so often my Rakhi letters get delayed by a day or two. What does not help is keeping track that which brother is in which part of the world doing what; Which makes finding their addresses a very last moment-ish thing.

But its okay. Getting a Rakhi on the VERY day of rakhsha bandhan is not as important and letting the recipient know,that the author of the letter thinks about them, cares for them and loves them, even if they haven't met for years.

So dear brothers. I don't need you to write back to me. (Trust me,The last thing I need are pity letters). Think of the letters as handwritten annual reports of a Singh's life. If you string together all the letters I've ever written, you each own your own personalized, handwritten copy of 'Devyani's Autobiography' :P
I'm in a zen like state when I write letters. It's a way I share the happenings of my life with you. That for me is Raksha Bandhan in the truest sense.

Just tell me when you get your letters. If you don't I can sue the Post Office people for 500 bucks per letter. (At least I'll earn something.)
Happy Rakhi! :)