OK, am I alone when I tell you I had never heard of this “holiday”, but Card Reading Day is a real holiday. When one of my friends was asking me about it, I honestly thought it was some sort of mystical magic day, with tarot card readings…ha! I thought there must be more to this so I opened up my best friend Google and did some research. This holiday revolves around greeting cards, which are right up my alley!
There doesn't seem to be an originator to this day. Perhaps, a sentimental person just started it in a particular town and it spread…who knows! While it certainly doesn't rise to the importance of Christmas or Thanksgiving it does have its place. I have a basket (well, it's actually more like a tote) full of cards people have sent me over the years. I get them out from time to time and go through them. If I'm honest, I do this more when I'm feeling sad or maybe overwhelmed with “life”.
In ancient times in Egypt, special greetings to friends and loved ones were actually inscribed on presents. Talk about a lot of work!!
We just celebrated Valentine's Day and the earliest greetings of love date back to the 16th century. Many people see these as the precursors to our greeting cards of modern times. Following World War 1, in the United States, sending seasonal cards became popular. Hallmark jumped to the forefront of this industry and became famous world-wide.
It always perks me up to read special messages from dear friends and loved ones. I rarely throw cards away, and as a longtime paper crafter, I SEND out a lot of cards, too. I hope the recipients also hold on to them to be reminded of how much they mean to me.
So now that you know card reading day is a real holiday, grab a beverage and some of the cards you've saved, and take a trip down Memory Lane. Maybe you'll want to SEND out a few cards that will become sentimental keepsakes for others.
