What Does Spring Look Like in Your Town? In my town, spring explodes. Green grass shoots up out of dried, brown earth. Trees sprout green buds and, later, pink blossoms and leaves. The sun shines on cracked sidewalk concrete and children run outside to ride new bikes and to draw hopscotch grids.

I sit on my porch steps, blowing the bubbles I’ve been saving in celebration of the new season and savoring the warm sun on my skin.

Spring is iced tea, parks, clean air, and smiles. Spring is a doorway to summer. Spring is my shadow on the ground again.

The Photo Album Chain Letter is a celebration of the diversity from town to town, across the nation and around the world. It is a collection of photos representing those towns and cities, linking us together. Let’s share our towns with each other!

Here’s How It Works: The chain letter — an SD card and a collection of notes — is mailed from pen pal to pen pal, in an envelope. We will be using an SD card to store the photos, so that a) none of the photos get damaged in the mail and b) no one has to worry about printing their photos. The pen pal who currently has the chain letter takes a photo of spring in their town, either with the provided SD card in a digital camera or a cell phone (you can transfer that photo to the SD card afterward). The photo should not be identifying (i.e., not a picture of your house with the address number or any other recognizable landmark) for safety reasons. The pen pal mails the chain letter with the SD card and any notes to the next pen pal on the list, until the chain letter is complete and goes back to headquarters. You are responsible for contacting the next recipient on the list by email for their address; we do not collect addresses and we will not post them on the website.

Simply sign up for the Photo Album Chain Letter with your name and email address to get involved.

By signing up, you agree to give your address to the pen pal that contacts you by email. You also agree that you are at least eighteen years of age or that you have your parents’ permission to participate. You agree to pass the chain letter on in a timely manner so that everyone may get a chance to participate. You also agree to notify us when you receive and mail the chain letter by posting in the Photo Album Chain Letter forums.

When mailing the chain letter, please:

• write your location on the provided sheet of paper (do not write your address);
• wrap the SD card in its case with a sheet of paper or bubble wrap;
• mark the envelope with PLEASE DO NOT CRUSH so that the SD card doesn’t get crushed in the mail; and
• be sure that all materials you received are in the envelope when you send it to the next participant.

You may also include a note if you’d like, about the photo and why you chose it.

When the chain letter is complete, I will put together a scrapbook of our photos and any notes included. I will hold a raffle for the album, and the winner of the raffle will receive the scrapbook! Proceeds from the raffle will go toward the cost of printing Letters of Love teeshirts.

If you have any questions, email me at elizabeth[at]lettersoflove[dot]net.

Participants:

1. Elizabeth Kaylene — elizabeth[at]lettersoflove[dot]net
2. Brooke — bablovestwloha [at] hotmail [dot] com