16 to Go!

Are you sending Christmas cards this year? If so, you're in good company. Turns out 45% of all cards sent are Christmas Cards. Did you ever wonder where that tradition started?

The custom of sending Christmas Cards began in 1843 in the UK. A government employee named Henry Cole was trying to entice people to use the new "Public Post" system. This system made it possible (and affordable) for the average person to send mail. Prior to the introduction of the "Pubic Post" only the rich could afford to share news in this way.

So Cole came up with an idea. He and his friend John Calcott Horsely worked together to design the first Christmas Card. It was a tri-fold card with the outer layers showing people giving food to the poor and the inner image featuring a family enjoying Christmas dinner together.

The custom caught on and as the printing process improved the cards became more accessible to the average person. By the early 1900s, Christmas card giving had spread across Europe and became particularly popular in Germany. By 1875 affordable Christmas cards reached the United States, as well. The tradition has grown by leaps and bounds ever since. Last year, in fact, 1.5 billion holiday cards were sent in the U.S. alone. That's a lot of cheer!

Henry Cole probably never imagined what a sensation he was creating with his simple idea to popularize public mail. He likewise would never have imagined the fate of one of those first cards that he sent to his own grandmother. At the time, the card would have cost him about 8 cents. Recently it was sold at auction for a hefty $35,800.

It's unlikely any of us will be investing that heavily in our holiday wishes this year. But that doesn't mean the cards we send won't have great value to the loved ones
who receive them. You never know who might be feeling low and in need of a little extra love. Your card could serve as the perfect medicine.

Remember also to take time to enjoy the cards you receive. They are tangible reminders that someone, somewhere is thinking about you. And that . . . is priceless!