Issue No. 1: The Collector of Voices

Dear Human,

Welcome to the first edition of The Sunday Postmark. As we sit down with our pens this new year, I want to take you back to a cold December night in 1788, in a farmhouse in Scotland.

A poet named Robert Burns sat at his desk, his heart "thrilled" by a melody he had just heard. He picked up his quill and wrote a letter to his friend, Mrs. Frances Dunlop. In it, he transcribed the words to a song we now know as "Auld Lang Syne."

The Postmark

For years, the world believed Burns wrote the song himself. But the truth is much kinder. Burns was a "collector" of the human spirit. He admitted that he had heard the lyrics from "an old man’s singing" in the street. At a time when traditional Scottish culture was being erased, Burns realized that if he didn't write those words down, the old man’s song—and the kindness it carried—would vanish forever.

The heart of the song is the "cup o’ kindness." In the 18th century, "kindness" didn't just mean being nice; it meant kinship. To take a cup of kindness was to say: “We are of the same kind. Your history is my history.”

Auld Lang Syne

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,

and never brought to mind?

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,

and auld lang syne?

Chorus:

For auld lang syne, my jo,

for auld lang syne,

we'll tak' a cup o' kindness yet,

for auld lang syne.

And surely ye'll be your pint-stoup!

and surely I'll be mine!

And we'll tak' a cup o' kindness yet,

for auld lang syne.

Chorus

We twa hae run about the braes,

and pou'd the gowans fine;

But we've wander'd mony a weary fit,

sin' auld lang syne.

Chorus

We twa hae paidl'd in the burn,

frae morning sun till dine;^[c]

But seas between us braid hae roar'd

sin' auld lang syne.

Chorus

And there's a hand, my trusty fiere!

and gie's a hand o' thine!

And we'll tak' a right gude-willie waught,

for auld lang syne.

The Lesson

By writing that one letter, Burns didn't just save a poem; he gave the entire human race a way to say goodbye without forgetting. He proved that the simplest act of preservation writing something down is a gift to people who haven't even been born yet.

Your Weekly Prompt

The phrase "Auld Lang Syne" roughly translates to "for old times' sake." Today, your mission is to send a "Cup of Kindness" to an old acquaintance.

• The Task: Write to someone you haven't seen in at least three years.

• The Script: "I was reading about the history of 'Auld Lang Syne' today—how Robert Burns wrote it down just so it wouldn't be forgotten. It made me realize I haven't reached out in a while, and I didn't want our 'old times' to be forgotten either. I'm sending this note as a 'cup of kindness' to say I'm thinking of you..."

• 
  

With warmth and ink,

TheKindnessStudio