Give: Love Letters To Strangers

By Erin Glabets

Imagine writing a love letter to someone you’ve never met. A note telling someone that they’re not alone, that they’re special, and that they’re loved. Think of the hope it could bring to someone suffering from sickness, relational heartbreak, or just plain solitude.

The World Needs More Love Letters, a recently launched online community, is trying to do just that. It was started by Hannah Brencher, a twenty-something who began writing letters to strangers as a way to find hope and healing from her own pain. In her own words: “We are on a mission to spread more love letters out into a world that so desperately needs them. Through writing, leaving and mailing love letters, we are learning to turn our words into lanterns to light the paths of others.”

The group encourages others to write inspiring notes, package them in a way that they can’t be ignored, and leave them in places---like books, coffee shops, trains---where people will be compelled to pick them up.

More Love Letters also mails a bundle of letters every month to someone who’s especially in need of the hope and encouragement; they are building an e-mail list of writers who want to be part of that mission, too.

It’s just about to finish up an awesome 12-day Christmastime push for love letter writing (I just discovered More Love Letters days ago, so I’m a bit late in telling you about it.)

Each day from December 5 to December 17th, they’ve been featuring one special recipient, and they give you a week to mail your letter for that person to their headquarters. Those recipients include Anthony (recently lost the love of his life to cancer), Julia (a seven-year-old battling cancer), and Josie and Hannah (sisters dealing with their parents’ divorce). Writers have a week to get their letters in the mail---so you if you're interested, you still have time to write to some of the recipients featured in the past few days.

I think writing love letters is an incredible way to celebrate the “giving more” aspect of Advent Conspiracy. This week my community group studied the story of the Good Samaritan in Luke and discussed what it means to be a true neighbor to someone. Writing one of these love letters strikes me as a way to be a neighbor to someone you’ve never met and never will meet. It feels a bit silly and even scary to communicate to a stranger in this way, but I love the challenge of it.

Photo from moreloveletters.com/blog 

I hope to dig deeper into the story of Hannah Brencher and More Love Letters soon, so check back. In the meantime here are some ways you can get involved:

• Check out the More Love Letters blog for some of the people you can reach out to with love letters during this these last couple of days of the Christmas campaign. Commit to writing them here.

• Check out the group’s Love Letter Writing 101. And its do’s and dont’s. (Hints: don’t actually make them romantic and mushy or don’t try to give advice. Do tell your story honestly and get creative.)

• Pull out some homemade stationery and write! Invite friends over and make it a party where you can all do it together. Do it with your families and kids. Leave them in places where people will find them. And take pictures to document the experience.

•Join the subscriber list to be part of future love letter writing bundles.

Photo from moreloveletters.com/blog