“Dear Mikey…”
Unlike letters from campers, it’s no coincidence that you don’t hear much about letters to campers from their parents, family and friends. And there’s a good reason for that. Compared to their campers (like the fictional Mikey), parents, family and friends don’t have that much to say. After all, going to the same job, eating the same dinners, walking the same dog, watching the same TV shows are, well, not terribly interesting and well, not very letter worthy. I am not saying that my own life is interesting, but that, on its own, it is not necessarily “letter-worthy.”
[Confession:] In fact, that’s why I usually let my wife write our letters (via email). Every now and then (as in, rarely), something interesting happens so I write or chime in on the daily email letter. Or I get a creative bug and write an unusual or funny (or at least funny to me) letter. Heck, things have got so bad that I have even written letters from our dog.
This would not be a problem except that when we ask them, our kids routinely say that they want a letter each day. Every single day. Not just every other day… not just when something interesting happens… not just when we go somewhere else… No, they want letters every day. And as caring parents (yes, other adjectives do come to mind…), we decided it was best to support them with daily letters.
So I started to think — and I realized that I was probably not alone in my lack of letter-worthiness. I know that my own Mom faced the same problem some years ago when we were campers. And she had 4 campers to write – and by hand no less. And I bet that you, or someone you know with campers, has a similar problem.
There is a better way — and this blog is designed to solve this pesky problem, so that we parents can ensure that our letters are, well, letter worthy! How? Through (dare I say) canned letters that you can customize on your own to meet your needs. Simply cut and paste a letter, drop it into your email (you do have email, don’t you?), add a few tweaks, and you are good to go. I will also offer some inspiration a well – interesting topics that you can write about on your own.
So check back soon for lots ‘o letters for “Mikey,” inspiration, and even a few laughs!
–Steve
NOTES
New URL – On July 17, 2010, the URL changed to www.LettersToCamp.net.
The old URL is still active and takes you to the same place: LettersToCamp.Wordpress.com
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Letters to Camp 
What a great idea for parents. Yes, writing to camp kids is a challenge. I am a grandmother now, and have no child at camp. But, I do remember when that was a problem. Presently, I write letters to my grandchildren. When I run out of topics, I write letters “from” my cat or dog. Or I write letters about funny things that happened “far, far away and a long time ago” when I was a little girl “in the olden days”. I have even published a book for grandparents about writing letters to grandchildren, titled Curly Grandma’s Letters. I hope to see more about letters to camp. It sounds great!
Thank you curly Grandma! I love to have guest writers, so if you’re interested in writing a more detailed post on how to write a letter to a camping grandchild, please let me know.
Thanks,
Steve
When my girls were very young, they would write letters to Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and even to the tooth fairy. As a good mama, I found myself writing a lot of letters at 2am. And unfortunately, my youngest daughter, Shannan, never missed a chance to ask a dozen questions in her letters. She loved writing letters, but mostly, she loved getting letters.
So, when Shannan was a little older and went off to Girl Scout camp, letters were a must. Along with my motherly love notes, I made sure she received a letter from her favorite family member: her beloved cat. Not beloved to me, mind you, to her.
Rosemary joined our family as a throwaway: a lost, forlorn, yet already spaded feline. And, she was a huge, furry, calico heartthrob to my little Shannan. I constantly teased my girls about how cats were self-satisfying, conceited animals incapable of real affection for humans. But, Shannan insisted Rosemary wasn’t aloof. She was finicky. She wasn’t feisty. She was defensive. She wasn’t mine. She was Shannan’s.
Yes, if Shannan was off at camp, eating and bunking with other scouts, it was only fitting that Rosemary send her a letter, complete with muddy paw prints and a self portrait scribbled in pencil. And, it went something like this.
Dear Shannan,
Nobody here likes me … like you do.
Mom pretends she does. She feeds me and pets me.
She finally listened to you and wormed me. Now, I feel better.
Who finally wormed you? I hear it is helping. I am glad.
But, about me:
Mom still doesn’t let me on her swing. Only you do.
I miss you so much.
I wish everyone here was as sweet as you.
You are the only person in the whole-wide-world that loves me
and understands me and knows how important I am.
I hope you like this picture of me. I think I look beautiful.
I can’t wait until you come home and sit with me,
and pet me, and treat me the way I should be treated.
I know you miss me.
Well, I must go. I feel that I should walk around a little
and let the other animals see how beautiful I am.
Keep taking your wormer. It helps. I promise.
You’ll be home soon, and then you can tell me
just how much you missed me and just how wonderful I am.
Love,
Rosemary