November 2, 2016
I have been a fan of Margaret Shepherd’s books for many years. When I first discovered her collection of letter writing guides, I was sold. I felt I found a kindred spirit. With a little research, I discovered her address and immediately wrote to Margaret Shepherd expressing my thanks and appreciation. She wrote back saying that letter writing was her “favorite was to communicate.”
I write to her when I have something newsworthy, which is usually several times a year. In return, for the last few years, I have received one of Margaret’s original holiday cards and a yearly newsletter. As she recommends: “personalize those newsletters with a few handwritten lines.” And so she does with her calligraphic words of personal encouragement just for me!
I can’t recall how many of Margaret Shepherd’s books I have purchased as gifts. In this age when manners hardly exist anymore, I feel relieved to have The Art of the Personal Letter, The Art of the Handwritten Note, and The Art of Civilized Conversation– to hold a standard for polite human interaction, with a central focus on letter writing. Needless-to-say, I refer to her books often.
I learned from Margaret’s newsletters, that she is married to David Friend. I noticed in a recent Peabody Museum catalog that David Friend was funding a new hall at the museum to showcase a collection of large minerals and gemstones. I live nearby and asked Margaret if I might be invited to the opening. An email followed from the Peabody for October 13th. Wow!
The opening was amazingly crowded. Not being very tall, I couldn’t see the speakers. The acknowledgements took about an hour. David Friend spoke saying that his Dad had given him a hammer to discover minerals as a boy. He still has that hammer! Finally, the ribbon was cut, the gallery opened and the crowd flowed inward.
I didn’t know anyone. The room was extremely dark. Finally, I saw David Friend posing for photos by the huge quartz crystal pictured above. I heard people addressing him as “David, ” so that was key. When a young woman came over and leaned on David for a photo, I recognized her from one of Margaret’s newsletters. I circled around a few times till I spotted the gal and said, “Hello. Can you tell me where Margaret is?” She graciously pointed to her right, and Margaret Shepherd turned around.
“I’m Carol Christmas,” I said. She responded, “Why is that name familiar?” “I write to you,” I chirped. Recognition brought me a big smile and a hug. She announced to those around us, “She’s written to me for 20 years.” That was a bit exaggerated but I felt pleased that she thought we went back a long way.
We spoke briefly. The room was quite noisy. I asked her if she would sign my three books. She had her trusty pen and we found a drinks table to accomplish the task. I had written her a letter which she quickly deposited in her Vera Bradley backpack. I also carried a Vera Bradley bag!
As you can see in the photo, it was mighty dark. Margaret inscribed each of my books with her beautiful script. I told her of my idea to create a letter writing service for people who can’t find the time to write themselves. Her response to this concept was: “Great idea!”
When Margaret was finished signing my books, she reached into her bag and gave me another gift, one of her business cards. It’s an ambigram. It’s it cool?
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Margaret Shepherd is a world renowned calligrapher and the author of dozens of books on calligraphy- at all skill levels. She even has one called- Basics of Left-Handed Calligraphy. Her books are available on amazon.com