Cursive vs. Digital Dilemma

Cursive vs. Digital Dilemma

When writing a keepsake letter to your child in the digital age, is it important to pull out the ink pen and hand write the letter in cursive writing or use a digital option?  This is a question I asked other parents engaging in a similar task.  Some thought it might be more meaningful for the child to receive a written-by-hand letter.  Imagine the child opening the letter years later and saying, “Wow, this letter was written by mom” or “This is in mom’s handwriting.”  Some parents also believe it needs to be hand written to prove the authenticity of the author.  In contrast, other parents wondered if the child would even be able to read their handwriting.  I look at my own handwriting and I can barely read it!  Would a child get so frustrated trying to decipher and read the handwriting and the letter would not get completely read or the message would be lost? 

So, I asked my child – “Would you prefer to receive a letter from your mom written-by-hand in cursive writing or in digital format? “ With no hesitation, the response was DIGITAL.  The following reasons were provided for selecting a digital letter versus handwritten letter:

• -        Looks like you put more time and effort into it
• -        Easier to read
• -        You can send the file to me right away
• -        You could embed media into the file so it’s not just words
• -        The content of the letter is what makes it “written by mom” not the handwriting and not the signature at the bottom.

Why would you choose digital or handwritten format to write a keepsake letter?