Reading and writing skills

READING
Letter Collecting
I have become a collector of letters. I collect two types: letters that are (to me at least) historically interesting and letters from or to famous people. I began shortly after a day in which I received almost 200 emails. The messages — for that is what they were, certainly not letters — were mostly very short. I was easily able to reply, save or delete all of them in one sitting. It struck me that particular day that the whole procedure was vaguely miraculous. But it is a miracle that comes with a big price tag. With the invention of email we have gained so much and lost so much when the great age of letter writing ended. So what did we lose? The texture and colours of paper, the fading inks, the uniqueness of a signature, the anticipation of envelopes covered with jewelled stamps — falling softly though a letter box. What did we gain? Click, send, delete and low cost communication with unimaginable speed! But sometimes I think the loss is greater. What we lost most of all was time: time for thinking and composing, time for choosing an exact word to convey an emotion, time and space to craft and create unique objects.
I bought my first letters on an internet auction two days later. That was two years ago. Now I have 100 letters in my collection which I keep in beautiful folders to protect them. To begin with I went for quantity rather than quality. You need to buy from the right people to avoid fakes and forgeries. I generally buy on the internet - but from trusted companies. What surprises many people (who are not collectors) is that some letters from famous names and even from royalty can be bought for a low price. If there are plenty for sale in the auctions the price will be quite low and vice versa if the letters are rare. For example, I have signed cards from 3 out of 4 members of the Beatles, but I could not afford a letter from their manager Brian Epstein. Epstein died young and letters from him are quite rare.
In my collection I have singers, artists, film stars and even a famous gangster! Most of these I paid just ￡ 30 - ￡ 80 each for. I also have letters that are interesting in terms of social history. I have a letter from a coal mine owner complaining about strikers and others from governesses, policeman, gentlemen, farmers etc. taking about daily life over 100 years ago. I like them because they are old, and smudged and alive with history! Best of all, they somehow connect me to the past.
Recently however I have been paying more for each letter. The strategy has changed to aim for quality rather than quantity. For example I now own a letter from Winston Churchill. I also have a letter from Charles Dickens that he wrote in 1844 whilst he was visiting America. I am spending more money of course and several of my best letters cost between J350 and J450. But the way I look at it is to see them as an investment. If I buy good quality letters, insure them and look after them well — then there is a chance that they will go up in value. It is a risk of course but if I have an urgent need of money 10 or 20 years from now, I might be able to sell them for a good profit. In this sense it is a bit like investing in a company.
But at least I get to really enjoy and appreciate my collection rather than owning shares in some business in which I have no emotional interest.