You've got mail

What took weeks just a decade ago, can be done overnight today. I am talking about mail. I love the instant gratification of e-mail. Across countries, continents, it doesn't matter, the e-mail man delivers within just a few minutes.

It's especially useful when your family lives overseas. I have become "pen-pals" with my niece Antonia. I sent her a letter yesterday, and so that she doesn't forget Auntie Annie from Canada, I attached a current picture of me.

This morning I got this picture of her with the letter in my inbox, and it made me smile. It's definitely no substitute to a real visit, and I wished very much I could have been with her and the entire wexi-clan. But a weekend trip to Europe is just not in the cards: I would have been like a half-dead fly anyways - trying to recover from an 8 hour jet lag.

So, in between the infrequent visits to the mother country, I am grateful for having the internet, jajah, e-mails and photosharing websites (picasa or flickr): they give me a sense of staying in touch - at least on the screen and in my thoughts.