It had been my habit, when I received a thank you note, to put it in the cookbook I was reading as a bookmark and there it would stay.  Well, yes, I read cookbooks like novels.  I figure the author has a unique  philosophy he/she wants to share and a story about the restaurant, the education, the culture or the mentor that inspired the book.  I want to know this story.

This morning while looking for a recipe, I opened a cookbook and there was a note.  In fact, there were four notes in that book.  I reread each one.  They brought back so many memories:  two new babies, moving into a new house, and a birthday gift.  It’s fun to run into these notes occasionally and reminisce.

And right then, an aha moment:  It’s been ??? how many years since I received an actual physical, paper, thank you note?  In the three or four year range anyway.  Thank you notes  and letters have gradually faded from consciousness.  Today we email and text.

When was the last time you bundled your emails  and texts with a red satin ribbon and carefully placed them in a special box stored on the top shelf of your closet?   When was the last time you stopped by a neighbor’s unannounced and spent the afternoon visiting?  I remember my Mother lamenting about the disappearance of meat markets as the supermarkets came on the scene.  Change.  Day to day things seem the same…..but look back over just the past year and yikes! so much has changed.

Today we share news on facebook and twitter.    Yes, everything is always in flux…..ebbing and flowing.  The average American moves every five years.   Our neighborhoods are expanding to include the whole continent.  We have friends all over the world.  This is an exciting time to be alive.

Socrates is quoted:  “The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new”.  So…..I’m not going to throw out those thank you notes.  I’ll still enjoy running into them at odd moments and having them trigger memories.  But…..I am going to enjoy blogging, facebook, twitter, etc. and try to remember to express my gratitude more.