My involvement in the More Love Letters movement over the past year has been a treasured source of hope and peace in my life.  This group promotes writing letters to strangers who need them as a form of therapeutic healing.  The practice of regularly writing these letters has been instrumental in changing my worldview for the better.  It has broadened my capacity for hope, positive thinking, healing, compassion, thoughtfulness, acceptance, forgiveness and inner peace in the face of adversity.

The power of these written words is transformative both for the writer and receiver.  Healing begins when I read the stories of those nominated to receive the letters, as I begin to consider the circumstances of someone else and personalize it in some way.  I know that someone out there is hurting and the seeds of compassion sprout in my heart and I am compelled to do something small to help ease their burden.  I discover the bravery to put pen to paper and reach out to a stranger and offer a piece of myself to them when they need it the most.

“Life is hard. And yes, it breaks your heart. But you don’t have to go it alone. We’re right with you. It matters that you’re here.” – Hannah Brencher, More Love Letters.com

There is a mystical power that becomes palpable as I start to understand that someone who I’ve never met, who is completely flawed and imperfect, who very possibly believes things I am opposed to, and who likely may never respond to my gesture needs me.  They need my friendship, my acceptance, my love.  They need to know that they are special and important to the world.  They need to know that what they are experiencing is significant and meaningful.  And one random love letter really has the power to confirm all that for them.  It becomes an honor to dedicate some of my time, thought and effort to making the world a nicer place to be in for someone, even if just for a day.  In exchange I gain an ever expanding love for humanity and for myself.

I keep a copy of each letter I send.  They are treasures to me.  A lot of meditation and thought and love goes into writing them and although they are meant for others, they are all a piece of me.  It feels like a gift to write them and to send them and yet I feel like there is more work for them to do.  So I’ll be sharing them here from time to time.  It’s one small thing I can give to you, Reader, in appreciation of you just being yourself.

There are many ways you can dig deeper into what More Love Letters is all about. You can start by visiting their website!

Read love letters from my "Love letters to humanity" series.

Photo courtesy of Kelsi Barr under a Creative Commons license.