WhatsApp is instant. I send "Lol", you receive "Lol". It is efficient communication, but it is cheap. The message costs me nothing, so it means nothing.

For one week, I deleted WhatsApp. If I wanted to tell a friend something non-urgent, I had to send a physical postcard. This meant walking to the post office, buying a stamp, finding a pen, and physically writing it.

> THE MESSAGE COMPRESSION

A postcard has limited space. You cannot ramble. You cannot delete. You have to think: "Is this worth ₹5 and a 20-minute walk?" Most of my daily WhatsApp chatter ("Did u eat?", "Look at this meme") died instantly. Only the important stuff survived.

INDIA POST
₹5
Dear Rahul,
I saw a dog today that looked exactly like your boss. It was barking at a tree for no reason.
Also, are we still on for the trip in December? I need to book tickets.

- N

> THE WAIT (LATENCY IS A FEATURE)

I dropped the card in the red box on Monday. Tuesday: Nothing. Wednesday: Nothing. Thursday: Nothing.
On WhatsApp, no reply for 5 minutes gives me anxiety. "Is he ignoring me? Is he dead?" With mail, the silence is expected. It is peaceful. I did my part. The universe (and India Post) will handle the rest.

> THE RECEPTION

// PACKET_TRACE

  • Day 1: Sent from Bangalore.
  • Day 2-4: In Transit (The Black Box).
  • Day 5: Delivered in Mumbai.

Recipient Reaction (via Phone Call): "Bro, did you get kidnapped? Why did you send me a piece of cardboard? also... thanks. I put it on my fridge."

A WhatsApp message disappears into the chat history void in 24 hours. A postcard goes on the fridge. It stays there for months. It occupies physical space in their life. It is tangible proof that you thought about them.

> THE AESTHETIC OF EFFORT

My handwriting is terrible. My hand cramped after writing 5 cards. But seeing my own messy scrawl on paper felt more "Me" than the sterile Arial font of a chat app. In a digital world, imperfection is the only signature we have left.

> CONCLUSION

I can't run my life on postcards. It's too slow. But for "Thinking of You" messages? I'm never texting again. A text is a notification. A postcard is a gift.