Hello again, everyone!
It's been about a month since my last post here.
I've been writing letters whenever I could find some free time, but I honestly didn't expect it to take this long.
There were more letters to write than I anticipated, and some days I managed to write two letters, while on other days I couldn't write even one.
But finally, I've finished writing and sending all the letters I received requests for!
Well, the last few are still traveling across the world, so it may take another 20 days or so before I know whether they've arrived safely.
I really hope they all make it.
Some people have replied to my emails with kind words and encouragement, while others haven't responded. And that's completely fine!
But if you're one of the people who requested a letter, I'd really appreciate it if you could send me a quick email when it arrives. Just knowing that it reached you safely would mean a lot to me.
A few things I learned about international mail
I offered two ways to receive a letter.
The first was a completely free handwritten letter sent in a regular envelope through standard international mail.
These usually take around 20 days to arrive, based on what I've seen so far. However, I've only received confirmation for three or four of them, and some are still unaccounted for.
Because regular envelopes have limitations on weight and contents, I sometimes wished I could include a little more.
The second option was for people who kindly offered to cover the shipping costs.
Thanks to their support, I was able to use a faster shipping method. Most of those letters arrived within about 7–10 days.
I could also use larger envelopes and include a few little gifts from Korea.
I'm truly grateful to everyone who helped with shipping.
I also started making things myself.
I designed my own Korean-inspired stationery, made small paper keepsakes with people's names written in Hangul, and experimented with different ways of packaging everything.
I'm slowly figuring out a better system through trial and error.
And I learned something important.
Writing handwritten letters is harder than I thought. Haha.
Each letter takes me around one or two hours to write. When I add preparing everything, packaging, and visiting the post office, it takes quite a bit longer.
I have a family and work to take care of, so there are days when I simply can't find the time.
After writing dozens of letters, I think it's time to organize things a little better.
I've also been thinking about whether I should turn this into a small paid project.
If I could spend more time and care on each individual letter, perhaps that would be a good thing.
On the other hand, I worry that charging money might change the original spirit of what I wanted to do.
And if I make every letter too elaborate, I might end up not being able to write many letters at all. Haha.
I'm still thinking about it and trying to find the right balance.
But one thing is certain.
This community is where Hello, Wanderer began.
Even if I eventually expand this project elsewhere, I want to keep coming back here and writing free letters whenever I can.
I just need to find a better way to accept requests instead of taking on too many at once, like I did last time.
And one more thing I've realized while writing all these letters...
Even though I'm Korean, I've discovered that I still have a lot to learn about writing in my own language. 😅
And I've seen people here with much more beautiful handwriting than mine!
So I guess I need to work on both my writing and my handwriting.
Thank you so much to everyone who showed interest in a stranger from Korea.
Because of you, I've had a wonderful experience connecting with people in places I've never been.
I'll keep writing.
And hopefully, I'll be back soon to accept another small round of letter requests.
Thank you, everyone.
Sending lots of love from Korea. ❤️
오늘도, 내일도 행복하세요.
- From a Wanderer in Korea -
P.S. This post was translated from Korean using a translation tool.
