Appreciation of Hand Written Work

A week ago I was on the Subway commuting home late at night. I think I caught the last train of the evening. I was tired, but instead of taking a nap, I took out my sketchbook; which doubles as my journal, and started writing.

Sitting down and writing is not a challenge for me. The challenge comes when I try to force myself to write something specific like a short story or a poem, but if I just put a pencil to paper and write without any premeditation I'm always able to scribble some amount of work onto a page. And that's exactly what I was doing, sitting on the uncomfortable red seats of the subway car, my knees pulled up to my chest for warmth, jostling from side to side as the train sped along the tracks.

I was in my own little world, oblivious to the other passengers on the train, until I heard a soft voice interrupt the wandering of my pencil. A middle aged woman had stood, and made her way over to me. She stood over me and said,
"Excuse me for interrupting, but I love that you are writing." She smiled brightly. "I don't even care what you are writing, I just love that you are writing it. It is so refreshing to see someone actually writing. We are so technologically dependent these days that I rarely see anyone actually write. I love it."
I politely smiled back, a little surprised by her enthusiasm, and I thanked her for stopping and saying hi.

I was really touched by her remark and I'm not entirely sure why. She hadn't complimented my work, or my creativity, but I guess it was enough that she had enough courage to approach me. Obviously we share the same appreciation for traditional writing. I love writing in a journal, note pad, whatever. Same thing with reading, I like to feel the paper and smell the printer ink. It's a silly thing but it makes me feel cosy and relaxed.

People rarely acknowledge strangers, so for this woman to come up to me late at night and say how much she loved seeing me writing really meant a lot. It makes me happy to know there are still people out there who appreciate handwriting.

-Brandolyn