Latest / The Creative Life: Art, Writing, Music & Creative Living / Writing Letters to Ghosts: Finding Kinship With Those Who Came Before | The Creative Life
Transcript
- I found a box of unsent letters in my grandmother’s attic, addressed to her sister who died when they were twelve. The ink was faded, but the longing was so fresh it felt like it had been written yesterday. There is something profoundly tender about writing to someone who can never read your words. It’s not that they’re dead in the way we usually think of death—as an end—but rather as a presence that has shifted into a different frequency. When I sit down to write these letters, I’m not trying to fix the past. I’m not trying to resurrect them or change what happened. I’m just trying to hold space for the love that didn’t have a place to go. Let’s look closer at why we do this. We live in a world that demands immediate connection. If you miss someone, you call them. If you need answers, you text them. But when the person is gone, that direct line is severed. And sometimes, that silence is too loud. So we write. We put pen to paper and pour out the things we wish we could say if only we had one more conversation, one more coffee, one more chance to explain ourselves. These letters become vessels for our grief, yes, but also for our gratitude. They are proof that the relationship still matters, even if the format has changed. What’s the texture of that? For me, it feels like rough linen. Cool to the touch, but warm where my fingers press down. When I write to ancestors I never met—great-grandparents whose names I know only from birth certificates—I imagine their hands. Did they write with quills? Did their wrists ache after long days in fields or factories? Do they understand the weight of the digital age I inhabit? I often wonder if they worried about the same things I do. Did they lie awake wondering if they were enough? Did they struggle with money, with love, with the sheer exhaustion of being alive? Knowing they did makes me feel less alone. It creates a bridge across time. I’m not just talking to ghosts; I’m talking to the human experience itself. And in doing so, I realize that my struggles are not unique failures. They are shared inheritances. This perspective softens the edges of my own anxieties. I am part of a long line of people who tried their best with what they had. That is a comforting thought. It allows me to be gentler with myself. It’s okay to be unfinished in this process. You don’t need to have all the answers. You don’t need to write a perfect letter. In fact, the messy, rambling, contradictory drafts are often the most honest ones. Last week, I wrote a letter to my great-aunt Clara, who passed away before I was born. I started by asking her how she learned to make bread. Then I went off on a tangent about my own failed attempts at sourdough. Then I apologized for not visiting her grave last year. It wasn’t coherent. It wasn’t poetic. But it felt real. This practice isn’t about creating art for an audience. It’s about creating a sanctuary for your heart. When you write to those who died before you were born, you are acknowledging that their lives shaped yours. Their choices, their sacrifices, their loves—they are woven into the fabric of your existence. By naming them, by addressing them directly, you honor that lineage. You give voice to the quiet reverence you might not know how to express otherwise. And sometimes, the act of writing itself is the healing. The words leave the page, and the emotion finds its release. But it’s not just about family. Sometimes I write to historical figures, to artists, to strangers who touched my life through their work. I wrote a letter to Virginia Woolf once. Not because I expected a reply, but because her words saved me during a dark winter. I told her how her sentences held me together when nothing else would. I thanked her for the courage to be vulnerable on the page. These letters create a sense of kinship that transcends time. It’s a reminder that we are all connected by stories. The writer, the reader, the listener—we are all participants in a vast, ongoing conversation. When I write to Woolf, I feel a spark of recognition. She understood loneliness. She understood the pressure of expectation. And in that understanding, I find companionship. It’s strange, isn’t it? To feel close to someone who lived a century ago. But it’s true. Love doesn’t disappear just because the body does. It transforms. And writing is one way we keep that love alive. So what do we do with these letters? Do we burn them? Bury them? Keep them in a drawer? I’ve done all three. Sometimes I read them aloud to an empty room, letting the sound fill the space. Other times, I fold them into origami birds and set them free. There is no right way. The ritual is personal. What matters is the intention behind it. When I release the letter, I’m not saying goodbye. I’m saying thank you. Thank you for listening. Thank you for being part of my story. And thank you for reminding me that I am part of a larger narrative. This practice helps me stay grounded in the present. It reminds me that I am here, now, breathing, feeling, living. And that is enough. It is always enough. We carry our ancestors with us, not in our pockets, but in our hearts. And sometimes, we need to speak to them to remember that they are there. If you feel called to try this, start small. Pick one person. It can be someone you knew, or someone you only know through history. Sit down with a notebook. Don’t worry about grammar or structure. Just let the words flow. Ask them questions. Tell them about your day. Share your fears, your hopes, your silly observations. And then, listen. Not with your ears, but with your intuition. Pay attention to what comes up inside you as you write. Do you feel lighter? Heavier? Calmer? Sad? Joyful? All of these emotions are valid. They are part of the process. Let yourself feel whatever arises. There is no judgment here. Only acceptance. This practice is not about fixing the past. It’s about honoring it. It’s about recognizing that love persists beyond death. And that is a beautiful thing to believe in. Even if it feels fragile. Especially if it feels fragile. Because fragility is where the light gets in. Thank you for sitting with me today. I hope you feel a little less alone in your longing. Until next time, keep writing. Keep feeling. Keep showing up. Love, Sydney.