Uncovering History with an Address Book

Where do you keep contact information for folks and businesses? I use a GMail Contacts list. I update this digital address book frequently. But recently I came across an old-fashioned way of keeping track of such things:my hard-backed address book that is 23 years old

And this hard-backed address book is a very different creation than my digital address book.

Reading through it is like going on a personal archeological dig. A dig is about uncovering history. As I go through the lettered tabs in my address book, I am uncovering history, too – my personal history. And like a physical dig,  I”ll observe, reflect and research to make sense of the discoveries.

As I go through each letter of the alphabet, I will record my findings. I will note if the address is current. I will indicate surprises, observations, disappointments, and action items. And I will write a letter for each address.

Besides saying “Hello, I was thinking about you,” I want to do the following.

• I will write the letter even if I know they’ve moved. Maybe it will be forwarded.
• If I have a personal memory of us together, I will share that.
• If not, I will thank them for their presence in my past life and wish them well.
• I will pray a blessing on each person or their family if the person is deceased.
• If they are still in my life, I will make sure I have their current info.

I will post on a new (alphabet) letter on Wednesdays. And if I get any replies to the letters I’ve sent, I will be sure to note that as well.

As the alphabet letter goes live, I will hot link it (complete list after the jump).

Your Turn . . . 

• Do you have a physical address book?  Why or why not?  
• Post a photo of your address book.
• How about joining me in your own address book adventure? 

I like writing letters. I say this even though I am never as faithful as I want to be. I actually started this project in 2011 and somehow I didn’t get very far.

Related Posts . . . Writing a Letter to Each Person in my Address Book – This is one of the posts I wrote way back in 2011.

Uncovering History & Writing a Letter to Each Person in my Address Book

• Introduction
• The Letter A
• The Letter B
• The Letter C
• The Letter D
• The Letter E
• The Letter F
• The Letter G
• The Letter H
• The Letter I
• The Letter J
• The Letter K
• The Letter L
• The Letter M
• The Letter N
• The Letter O
• The Letter P
• The Letter Q
• The Letter R
• The Letter S
• The Letter T
• The Letter U
• The Letter V
• The Letter W
• The Letter X
• The Letter Y
• The Letter Z