Long Distance “I Love You”s

Long Distance “I Love You”s

June 30th, 2011 @ 2:41 pm by Mrs. Marmalade
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I came across this sweet idea on Martha Stewart Weddings.

Here is the caption (from MSW):

“During the World Wars, when letters to their overseas sweethearts were scrutinized by military censors, lovers developed a secret code: They placed the postage stamp upside down. Then, if the letter inside was confiscated and the empty envelope forwarded on, as often happened, the stamp would still carry a message of devotion.”

I did a quick Google search to find some more information on this, and so far there isn’t much more than a short entry on the Philatelic Database (say that five times fast), and a site called “Prison Talk” (whoa there, ignoring that link…).

According to the Philatelic Database, or PDb as I’m going to call it, there was a “language of stamps,” but the upside-down stamp in the upper right hand corner meant “write no more.” An upside-down stamp on the left corner of an envelope meant “I love you.” BUT, since the Postal Service requires that we place the stamp on the right hand corner of our envelopes, I’m going to go ahead and say that an upside-down stamp on the right hand corner can also mean “I love you.”

What you probably don’t know is that I send Mr. Marmalade a letter every week. I email him more often than I probably should, just to say, “Hi, I love you and I’m thinking about you.” But to me, nothing comes close to the experience of receiving a letter in the mail. My inner history-nerd is so excited to do this the next time I send him a note. Hopefully he’ll get that I mean “I love you” and not “write no more.”

Any other long-distance/military brides love to send snail mail?

Tags: raleigh, relationships |

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14 Responses to “Long Distance “I Love You”s”

Member

KCheer (message) 370 posts, Helper bee

That is so sweet! Thanks for sharing!

6/30/11 @ 2:46 pm (reply)

Member

SweetRaines (message) 32 posts, Newbee

My fiancé were long distance for over a year before we got engaged. We wrote letters back and forth the whole time. It was really nice just to have something that they sat down and composed.

We totally did the upside down stamp thing too

6/30/11 @ 2:51 pm (reply)

Member

ThePinkPeony (message) 264 posts, Helper bee

Oh, I love snail mail too, I always get sad when I check my mailbox only to find that once again it’s only bills I don’t really get the chance to send much mail (especially not to Mr. PP - if I did, it would look something like “To: Mr. PP, East Side of the Office, … From: Miss PP, South Side of the Office”!), but I did have a boyfriend in law school (shh! don’t tell Mr. PP!! ) who always wrote me letters when we were home for holidays or vacations or whatnot, and I loved it (just, not him, so, that ended!). Such a great tradition though, it’s wonderful you do that!

6/30/11 @ 2:54 pm (reply)

Member

woodwindwaker (message) 590 posts, Busy bee

I’ve heard of LDR couples spraying their letters with their perfume/cologne. So when they open the letter, they are surrounded with the smell of their lover. *squeals* I think it’s sooo sweet!

6/30/11 @ 2:54 pm (reply)

Bee

Miss Bunting (message) 458 posts, Helper bee

Aw, that is so incredibly sweet! I love the idea of little hidden or subtle tokens to further express love.

6/30/11 @ 3:05 pm (reply)

Bee

Miss Pony (message) 4,175 posts, Honey bee

What a cute idea! I’m definitely planning on sending Mr. P a few things while he is far away and I love this idea!

6/30/11 @ 3:15 pm (reply)

Bee

Mrs. Elephant (message) 6,182 posts, Bee Keeper

That is very sweet. I never knew that letters were confiscated and only the envelopes were delivered.

6/30/11 @ 3:18 pm (reply)

Member

jen7martin (message) 1 posts, Wannabee

That is really sweet! I would say that based on your research it would only mean “write no more” if the envelope was empty when received. So logically speaking it has to mean “i love you” if there is something it it.

6/30/11 @ 4:18 pm (reply)

Guest

Honeycake

I definitely sent my airman snail mail and I agree that it makes a big difference to receive a hand written letter. I got some cute, funky Japanese stationary, colorful masking tape, and had our own inner-joke stamps made. He came home from deployment with every letter that I sent!

6/30/11 @ 4:59 pm (reply)

10.

Member

thefuturemrs.o (message) 216 posts, Helper bee

I ADORE sending and receiving mail. There’s something beautiful, romantic, and heartfelt about a hand-written letter. I love your posts because I just continue to relate sooo much!

6/30/11 @ 5:04 pm (reply)

11.

Bee

Mrs. Starfish (message) 1,924 posts, Buzzing bee

That’s super sweet, we only did long distance a few months and I remember how much we both loved getting letters. It’s definitely more special than an e-mail.

6/30/11 @ 8:26 pm (reply)

12.

Member

miss.qwerty (message) 895 posts, Busy bee

I’ve always been a snail mail nut, especially when Mr. Q was in training. Getting an email makes my day, but letters are that much more special.

6/30/11 @ 9:23 pm (reply)

13.

Bee

Miss Cucumber Sandwich (message) 572 posts, Busy bee

Huh, I knew about the upside down stamp but I never knew where it came from. Very interesting Lady M!

7/5/11 @ 9:23 pm (reply)

14.

Member

hisbahamamama (message) 587 posts, Busy bee

I still struggle with the snail mail - I fully understand the benefits but it’s just so hard…I know I shouldn’t be lazy for the one I love but I also appreciate the instant gratification of the phone call- snail mail takes 4-eva!

8/30/11 @ 2:11 pm (reply)