The Art of the Handwritten Note

Words by Elle Redman

These hands of yours

hold many things.

Yet it’s been said

this ancient art form

asks of you only

to hold what’s in your heart –

to hold a little space

for your Beloved.

Neighbour.

Friend.

Palm pressed against paper,

your pen becomes a vessel.

Warm,

Tender words,

layered

on tender pages.

Could it be a poem?

A sonnet?

A prayer?

An answer?

A handful of hopes,

bundled up as written notes?

Could it be Light

spilling through

generous sweep-swirls of ink,

until the whole page glows golden –

no matter how dark the day

your words found them?

In times gone by,

this art has safely kept

and unfolded

the wildest of stories.

It has unlocked lost memories,

lived in pockets and chests,

withstood wars.

It has remembered,

cheered,

mourned.

Meaning more

than we could ever really know.

And even beyond these things,

there is a value that lies

in such raw, unedited beauty.

The mistakes.

The crossings out.

The starting again.

The scribbles.

The dried posies, photographs, and extra scraps.

The important nothings

and everythings,

all tucked in

imperfectly.

The verses that bear witness –

brown envelopes that bear

traces of the journey,

Love drifting through the letterbox,

landing in the hands,

sweet heart

of another.

There is nothing quite like it.

Nothing at all.

Elle Redman is a multidisciplinary writer and creative living in London. You can read more about her here.