by Ginger Philbrick
My recent column on thank-you notes elicited many responses from readers—most of them grandparents.
The following is the text one reader sent to her granddaughter after the holidays. She gave me permission to share this heartfelt request.
Dear Amy (not the real name), as you know, I teach children how important it is to write thank-you notes. I would really like to have something from my own granddaughter, even if it’s a text, thanking me for all the things I gave her for Christmas and her birthday. I’d like to know if you liked them. I spent more than I could afford on your Christmas gifts and I would like to know that you appreciate what I do. Writing thank-you notes is something that will help you in life. Even if you sell real estate, as you say you want to, you should send a thank you to the people involved. It will make them want to refer you to others. A note can do amazing things. I love you, Amy.
This next note was brought to me by a grandmother whose experience was very different from the first reader’s. It was enclosed in a cheerful pink envelope and neatly printed on a matching card. As she handed it to me, she was beaming.
Dear Meme and Popa, Thank you for giving me the lesson in table manners. I had fun. One thing I learned was how to hold my knife and fork. I will practice my new manners every day at home, if possible. I love you so much.
At the risk of being called a thank-you note zealot, I encourage everyone, myself included, to be grateful for the big and small things others do for us, and when appropriate to take the extra step of expressing your gratitude in a handwritten note.
Ginger Philbrick is the owner of Because You Are Polite LLC. You are invited to email your manners questions to her and she will respond as time and space allow. You may contact her at youarepolite1@gmail.com.
