Letters of John F Kennedy

Since this week has been a media blur about John F Kennedy, I have decided to link to a letter he wrote from private school. It is nothing more than a note, but I find it amazing. It seems to be what a text would be now. He is also 15 years old here, about the same time when I started writing letters.


15 year old JFK Letter

Letter writing on a whole new level: The Amazing Michael Sull

I am very grateful to have met and become friends with the Master Penman, Michael Sull. He is a wonderful man and a good friend. We have been corresponding for a little while. He has been a vehement supporter of my teaching of and about the personal letter. I cannot thank him enough for that.

Here is a video of him writing....

The Amazing Michael Sull at work.

Hoping to Make it California for the 2014 show and THIS from the New York Times

Hello everyone! I am in the middle of working of giving another seminar at the LA Pen show in February of 2014. I will keep everyone updated.

Also, the following article was just forwarded me by a close friend. I will let you read it for yourself and comment on it before I do....

The Death of the Personal Letter

Just had to share this.....

I mentioned that I played with Buddy Wakefield a few weeks ago. Thankfully someone recorded a bit of the show. Please note that he does a long intro to Hurling Crowbirds at Mockingbars and that the second selection is a part of a very long opening jam where he did a few different poems and went off on a bunch of tangents.

My goal is to write a letter as amazing as one of his poems. Period.

Buddy Wakefield with Michael Kovacs performing Hurling Crowbirds at Mockingbars

Buddy Wakefield at the FTS Gallery October 2013 with Michael Kovacs

Laurie Anderson's letter about Lou Reed

The great songwriter Lou Reed died this past week. I must say that his album "Magic and Loss" was really stunning and, after losing some dear friends, listened to it over and over again for a year.

So here is a letter that his wife, the performance artist and musician Laurie Anderson, wrote to the East Hampton Star paper. It is a beautiful meditation on the completion to the arc of life.

To our neighbors:

What a beautiful fall! Everything shimmering and golden and all that incredible soft light. Water surrounding us.

Lou and I have spent a lot of time here in the past few years, and even though we’re city people this is our spiritual home.

Last week I promised Lou to get him out of the hospital and come home to Springs. And we made it!

Lou was a tai chi master and spent his last days here being happy and dazzled by the beauty and power and softness of nature. He died on Sunday morning looking at the trees and doing the famous 21 form of tai chi with just his musician hands moving through the air.

Lou was a prince and a fighter and I know his songs of the pain and beauty in the world will fill many people with the incredible joy he felt for life. Long live the beauty that comes down and through and onto all of us.

— Laurie Anderson
his loving wife and eternal friend

Rest in Peace Mr. Reed.