You’ve got mail

Editor’s note: This column originally appeared in the Jan. 27, 2005 edition of the Daily Mail.

You should always open your mail. You might be surprised at what is inside. Recently I was in a hurry when the mail was delivered to our house. I glanced through the collection quickly. There was the Nevada Daily Mail, a day later than those of you in town receive it. There was the long business envelope from the same paper, which I knew would contain my check for the month for writing the senior page. A square envelope postmarked from the town where I had given a program the week before was probably a thank you card from the hostess. A mailing from a credit card company with colorful information on the outside was another opportunity for me to get another credit card, which I didn’t need. There were also some colorful brochures offering many opportunities to buy everything from furniture to flower seeds. And a final packet was from a service organization, which I suspected was asking for a donation. I laid everything aside since I was in a hurry, put the newspaper where it would be handy for me to do the crossword puzzles later that day and went on about my other chores. Oh yes, I did put the envelope from the paper in my purse since I was going to town later and wanted to deposit the check. At the drive-up window of the bank I pulled to one side to prepare my deposit slip when I discovered that the envelope did not contain my check, but the income tax information for the 2004 forms. I pulled out of line and changed my plans for future shopping since I wasn’t reinforcing my bank account as I thought. Later, when I got home I decided I should look at the rest of the mail. The thank you card was indeed a thank you card. But it also contained an unexpected mileage check for coming to her town, plus a nice order for some more books. If I had opened that earlier I would have had the cash I needed for my extra shopping when the newspaper check wasn’t what was in the other envelope! On to the next thing. I knew I could toss the credit card mailing. I sure didn’t need anymore of them. But I thought I had better look inside just to be sure. It wasn’t an offer for another card, but a bill for the card I had used to get gas on my way to the meeting last week. I don’t usually use that card but that was the station I found when my dashboard reminders told me to get gas. The brochures were just what I thought they would be and I resisted the urge to buy anything. (But don’t those flowers and bushes on the seed catalogs look good in January?) The service organization letter was indeed a request for funds. But it did have a generous supply of personalized address stickers which I had been needing since I used my last ones on my Christmas cards. The saying that you can’t judge a book by its cover has changed for me. Now I will know that you can’t judge your mail by the envelopes. I wondered at the change in me since I used to eagerly look for the mail each day. Then I realized that most of the people I care about correspond with me by email. I hear from more people each day than I used to contact in a week. The main things we get in our mailbox are bills and advertisements. But now I have learned to look for some treasures inside.