Thank you for writing ...

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One of my favorite quotes from Seneca (the Stoic philosopher) is:

Thank you for writing so often. I never get a letter from you without instantly feeling that we are together. If pictures of absent friends bring us joy, relieving our emptiness with a solace however insubstantial, how much more so are letters that bear the marks and signs of the absent friend, affording us what is so delightful about seeing him again – the sense of recognition.

When I was younger (ok, ok, I wasn't that young, it was between the ages of 26 and 29) and had penpals, I would include this quote after the third or fourth exchange with someone.

I thought it captured wonderfully my sentiment in establishing a correspondence with someone.

The first time I ever used it was business related. I was dealing with a supplier trying to get shipping information on some parts I had ordered. After many unanswered faxes, I included this quote (out of irony) and lo! and behold!, I got a very sweet answer back in a few minutes.

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