In my day job I manage a church office. One of my responsibilities is to maintain the keys to the buildings. I keep a spread sheet with the key numbers, date the key was issued, and date returned. Recently someone moved away and returned their key through the mail.
When I received the envelope, I noticed it was thick and bulky. After I tore it open, I discovered her key in a small plastic bag wrapped inside two folded sheets of paper. That probably does not seem unusual—however, the paper was like none I had ever seen before. It was thick, moderately stiff, and soft to the touch—like heavy cotton fabric. The edges were frayed and the unique texture with irregularities in the finish made me wonder if she had made the paper.
When I emailed to let her know I received the key, I mentioned the unusual paper and said it looked like something I could use in a collage project.
She sent me this explanation and picture:
“. . . that’s great to hear the paper can serve another use! It actually is handmade in Nepal. I just wanted to make sure the envelope was cushioned enough for transit.”
I turned the paper over and over feeling the texture and examining the ripples and speckles. How amazing—I was holding paper made in a village in Napal!
I am surprised that she had this paper and chose to send if off simply for wrapping a key. The paper is so gorgeous it seems like you should be writing poetry or meaningful things on it . . . or creating artwork with it.
Here is information from the company website:
Lokta Paper
Lokta paper, handcrafted in the Himalayas, is made from Lokta bushes which grow in the southern slopes of the Nepali Himalayas between 5,250 and 13,000 feet. When cut properly, the bushes can produce three to eight new, fast-growing shoots which make this paper one of the most renewable and eco-friendly non-tree papers. The Lokta fibers are cooked in vats to create a pulp that is spread over wood-framed screens and set to dry in the sun. The paper is made from 100% Lokta with no added chemicals or fibers. It is regarded as one of the world’s finest hand-made papers.
The paper has been used for centuries for sacred texts. The oldest surviving Lokta paper is a religious text, a copy of the Karanya Buha Sutra Buddhist text which is estimated to be 1,000 to 1,900 years old.
Through the Mail
As I turned to toss the envelope into the trash, I happened to glance at the stamp. It was not a familiar stamp. It was a picture of a manatee. The USPS website describes the stamp:
Manatees Forever Stamp. Spread awareness for the need to protect a beloved marine mammal. The stamp features an illustration by Nancy Stahl, showing a gray-green West Indian manatee placidly lolling underwater near the surface.
[Note to self: Look at the stamps on envelopes before I throw them out.]
Little Things
It’s little things that make life memorable. Sometimes little things seem unimportant, but most of the time, small details are significant—even if only to jog us from our mental fog or to make us notice people, life, or the world.
The sender took care in what stamps she bought and what paper she purchased. She probably did not consider the effects it would have on me. Her decisions made me notice . . . the paper, the people who made the paper, and the plight of the manatees.
I gained new knowledge and awareness simply from a small envelope received through the mail.
[Note to self: Notice the little things. Enjoy the little things.]
The older I get, the more I’m conscious of ways very small things can make a change in the world. Tiny little things, but the world is made up of tiny matters, isn’t it?
— Sandra Cisneros (b. 1954) American writer
It has long been an axiom of mine that the little things are infinitely the most important.
— Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930) British writer, physician,
and creator of the character Sherlock Holmes
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