The Next Message You See Might Just Be A Letter

Lately, I have been giving this some thought.  How long has it been since I wrote a letter?  I thought back to the last time I wrote to my Congressman.  I wrote to both Representative Jim Clyburn and Senator Lindsay Graham   But alas, I sent those via email.  I know it has been some time since either of them have written personally to a constituent.  Each time I have received a reply that starts out something like this--"Thank you for your message to (Congressman or Senator) _______We are sure you understand that he does not have the to personally respond to each and every letter he receive...."

I have decided to actually send a letter next time.  It occurs to me that it won't be as easy to send an email reply, since the person responding won't be able to simply hit the reply button and send their reply (notice I have begun to go along with the now conventional use of the plural pronoun--in this case the possessive plural-- rather than using the old "his or her" when referring to the person responding to my message so as to avoid the insult of any previous stereotypical assumption as to the gender of the person (him), or even the awkward and perhaps condescending use of "him or her."

I am hoping that the onward march of the LBGTQ movement will still allow us to use the plural instead of the singular pronoun.   Even though we know that use of the singular of the third person pronoun would be more grammatically correct, that is, unless we have begun to share responsibility for sending the automated reply between two respondents which would be inefficient to say the least.  Conveniently enough, the plural pronoun is neither gender-specific nor expressive of one's sexual preference, so it is a single "tent" under which all can stand regardless of said gender or sexual preference--as if that matters when corresponding with someone you have never met, nor one you expect to meet.  Frankly, I don't need to know the gender or sexual preference of someone I meet in person.  A simple handshake and "pleased to meet you" will do nicely.

But, returning to the subject of a personal handwritten or typed (which should be OK if your handwriting is as awful as mine has become), I think it will come as a shock to that person, unless I have to call them to obtain their physical address.  (I'm really getting the hang if this plural pronoun thing, aren't I?).  I realize now that I will have to think long and hard about choosing to whom I send the first edition of my renewed method of communication--the letter.  From where I sit at the moment, I'm pretty sure it won't be my Congressman (I meant to say Congress-person, I really did!).