MIYAZAKI -- It may sound old-fashioned in this high-tech era, but why not convey your feelings to someone through correspondence, now that it is difficult to meet people in person? As a matter of fact, matchmaking projects that use the exchange of handwritten letters are gaining popularity.
At a time when many face-to-face events have been canceled to stem the coronavirus outbreak, writing letters at home to one's prospective marriage partner may be a heartwarming approach.
The city of Miyazaki launched a Miyazaki Koibumi Project (Miyazaki love letters project) in April. The city invites participants to register and pairs them up via the secretariat's arrangement.
Participants are asked to write on letter paper provided by the secretariat, without disclosing their names. The secretariat then checks the contents of their letters and puts them into the "Shiawase no Kiiroi Post" (Yellow post for happiness). The post, which is installed in the Aoshima district in the city, is said to bring happiness to people who drop letters in it. If a pair wishes to meet each other face-to-face, the secretariat arranges a meeting, too.
Launching this project had already been decided before the start of the coronavirus outbreak. Participants are limited to residents in the city and two neighboring towns. Currently, registered participants are 67 men and 98 women in their 20s to 50s, with 20 pairs exchanging letters.
The idea was conceived by Kosuke Kajiwara, 32, who works at the Kiyotake general branch office of the municipal government and had worked for the city's planning and policy department until March.
Kajiwara owes the idea to his parents who are in their 60s. Kajiwara learned that they had deepened their relationship through correspondence before their marriage. The couple had also maintained their good relations by exchanging letters when they lived separately in their 30s because of work.
Kajiwara said he had a chance to see these letters. "My mother told me that she had felt her husband's warm feelings when imagining he had touched the letter paper when writing on it. I was very impressed to hear that," he said.
A female participant in her 30s, who lives in Miyazaki, wrote about her new job and sent the letter to her correspondence partner in mid-June. A week later, she received a reply from the man. "I was delighted and excited when I found a reply letter in my mailbox," the woman said. The man wrote things like, "Good luck and do your best at your new job."
"I felt at ease because of the gentle tone of the letter. I feel we'll be able to get to know each other little by little through exchanging letters," she said.
Asuka Togo, 33, a staff worker of the secretariat, said: "Now, people can easily communicate with others via smartphone. Participants of this project gain this rather new feeling that they can hardly wait to receive a reply."
--17 couples made in Nagano Pref.
The municipal government of Chino in Nagano Prefecture has been hosting the "Yui Nikki" (Matchmaking Diary) project since 2018 by using an exchange diary style.
Pairing has been made three times by the project organizing committee for a total of 488 participants.
The system is almost the same as the one in Miyazaki. So far, 35 pairs have been formed and 17 of them have become couples.
In addition to matchmaking projects, there is also a program to encourage people to write letters to beloved family members and sweethearts. This program, organized by Kumamoto Pension Association's Minamiaso branch in the village of Minamiaso, was launched five years ago.
In April, the program organizer started a project titled "Love letter o kako" (Write love letters) to invite people to write letters while spending time at home. The letter paper can be downloaded from the branch's official website. The paper bears the message, "The greatest present for you is not going to see you" on its letterhead.
Takayuki Kubo , manager of the Minamiaso Tourism Organization that supports this project, said, "I feel we can express our emotions more honestly without feeling a lot of embarrassment when writing in a more formal manner than usual."
Kubo also said, "We'll still feel uneasy about the coronavirus for the time being, so I hope this project will be a good chance to reflect on ourselves and take our time writing."
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