I have a stack of letters and cards tucked away and saved for a rainy day. In this sweet little box I’ve got just about every kind of correspondence you can imagine- birthday cards, just because cards, random notes, and holiday well wishes.

I have years worth of emails archived in my account. I take a trip down memory lane once in awhile and travel back several years to see what my former self was up to. I did this recently, before my blogcation and my emergency trip to Florida (more on both soon, after my brain decompresses). Here is what I learned- I was a really uptight first time mother. I was obsessed with wooden toys, attachment parenting, and trying to mold Malone into the perfect baby that I thought he should be. I still like wooden toys and if I had to claim a parenting camp, I suppose attachment is where I’d fit. It is amazing what a difference on the job training makes in the motherhood department.

The-Divorce-Papers-by-Susan-Rieger

I’ve been keeping almost all of the post that arrives for both Lola and Malone. It’s mostly from their grandparents. Maybe it will mean something to them, maybe it won’t. But I can’t bear to throw away something that is signed love, Grammie (Nana, Mama Grand, or Grandma).

I think part of the reason I’m so obsessed with correspondence is because my mother died suddenly and without warning. I have a few letters and birthday cards from her. Her handwriting should be a font. It’s bubbly but not too cutesy. Strong, but not sharp and mean.

I’ve started keeping a one line a day journal for the kids, so they can have a little piece of my heart to hold with them long after I’m gone. I think the things we hold on to say a lot about who we are.

I am a correspondence hoarder.

This post was inspired by the novel The Divorce Papers by Susan Rieger. Young lawyer Sophie unwillingly takes her first divorce case with an entertaining and volatile client in this novel told through emails, letters and documents. Join From Left to Write on March 18 we discuss The Divorce Papers.

As a member, I received a copy of the book for review purposes.