My Great-Grandma’s Version of Texting

Apparently my shy Grandma Jessie had a vast social network.

A handful of large letter postcards from the hundreds of postcards Jessie saved.

My Great-Grandma Jessie kept every postcard anyone ever sent her. And everyone sent her postcards. She was a shy person, so postcards were a big part of her social life. And the format fit her well. She wasn’t verbose, so the brevity of a postcard message suited her perfectly.

Before the advent of apps like Facebook and Instagram, folks would announce their whereabouts by dropping a postcard in the mail to a friend or loved one. Sometimes they would hint to their general vicinity, like “Mt. Hood National Forest,” while other times, they’d grab a postcard right from the restaurant where they had lunch. In my humble opinion, they are a lot prettier than texts, and much harder to delete. My favorites are the ones that say something to the effect of, “Had the chicken parm. Pretty good. -Sol”

Postcard from Jessie’s brother, Archie. “Say Jessie do you think you can wrap my overcoat up and send it to me by express? I wish you would right away if you can. Arch”

Modern text translation: “can u bring my coat asap”