‘Who on earth still buys postcards?’

Well, I do. They’re holiday souvenirs, mementoes from museums and cards to be slipped into gifts.

I keep the nengajo that my students sent me, turning the New Year postcards into bookmarks. Though the students have graduated, sometimes, when I open a book, I run into them.

Of course, it’s easier to send an e-card or text message. But the extra effort says, I’m thinking of you. You matter.

If you put a postcard in a book, it could also say: Let’s meet there, in words and images. Let’s meet in a different world.