Postcards a Lost Art….

Today I received a postcard in the mail, my only traditional postcard in more than a decade. It wasn’t an invitation, “Save the Date” or “We’ve Moved” card; it was a picture postcard from a friend traveling in Greece. I must confess receiving the card thrilled me. This piece of snail mail, possibly left at the reception desk of a hotel, dropped in a mailbox, or taken to the local post office, made its mysterious and most likely grueling journey by truck, train, donkey—or whatever it was— and finally by plane to Atlanta. Postcards are indeed a lost art.



The terrific thing about postcards was and still is their vast variety. The possibilities are endless: the Eiffel Tower, Carlsbad Caverns, or any other famous tourist attraction. It could have a picture of a donkey wearing a sombrero, the champion hog at the Iowa state fair, or even a kitschy motel in Kalamazoo. Almost every business in this country, from a funeral home to a fancy resort and spa, had a postcard once upon a time. Today postcards are no longer a first-class marketing tool. We use the phone or internet to communicate; sadly postcards have become rare beyond tourist attractions.

I believe that postcards then and now contain masterpieces of minimalist verbal art; since unlike letters, postcards provide a brief and concise glimpse into someone’s life. It marks a brief moment in time when the writer thought enough of you to share their journey. I love postcards and I will make a greater effort to keep the tradition alive for myself and loved ones. I hope you will too.

Here are some great postcard sets that I found on Etsy.

 http://www.etsy.com/listing/74433387/postcard-set-paris-green-paris-photo

http://www.etsy.com/listing/73582247/scripture-art-delightful-postcards-set

Hundreds of creative postcards are for sale in many Esty shops; make someone's day by sending a handwritten postcard. It only takes a minute or two..... Cheers!