Well, not love letters exactly, but those from first boyfriends or girlfriends. While hunting for something else I came across a whole bundle of handwritten correspondence from the late 60s, on pages torn from college note books, hotel airline paper, beautiful writing pads in the days when people had their addresses printed at the top. Long rambling messages with a hint of wistfulness, talking about their lives at university, on secondment to New York, in the desert in Saudi Arabia. Wanting to tell me about their lives and hoping that way I would remember them. And I still do, though I had long forgotten just how much they told me. So fifty years on I reread them and, on a rainy day, have a sweet amble down memory laneā¦
I suspect in this ephemeral world now, all of that is lost. What will teenagers of today have to remember of the lives of their early loves in fifty years time?
I donāt remember what happened to my āintimateā letters! What concerns me is that maybe somebody āfoundā and read them 
Still have a few from the great love of my life who ditched me for some tosspot who she married a year later.In the most precious letter she sent me about 18 months after the wedding she wrote that she had made a terrible mistake and that she wanted to come back to me.
Thatās life I suppose ā¦
Peter that is so sadā¦ 
Mine came over with me to France but are still safely tucked away in one of two boxes of āthingsā (including birthday cards from my 1st birthday) that never got opened on arrival . Iām guessing Iām probably not alone with that unopened box that remains that way long after the move to France.
However, one day I will take that trip down memory lane, but at the moment still looking forward to life and what it may bring.
That really is quite sadā¦ What shape life could have beenā¦
Shit happens, you deal with it and move on. Donāt look back in angerā¦
I have nothing incriminating from past and probably present ārelationshipsā, much safer that way apart from memoriesā:grin:
Interestingly Mark, I donāt remember - so it was such a surprise and a pleasure to me that these young men back in the 60s were writing such long letters. These days, with WhatsAp, instagram etc etc etc there will be nothing there of any value in 50 years time, which I think is a huge shame.
I recently came across a box of old bits and pieces. Mainly cards but a few old photos and also my school reports. My two favourite comments being from my history master who, in the report just before my oālevel wrote ādisaster loomsā in block capitals and exclamation marks. (I have adopted that as my personal slogan and he wasnāt wrong). The year before that he wrote āDavidās lack of knowledge in this subject is compounded by his complete lazinessā. You canāt write that sort of thing on a report anymore!
I agree re the letters though, they will miss out in years to come, as they will with photos. Who is going to snuggle up on the sofa and say letās look at these 8,400 photoās we took in 2020. We decided that each year we review the photoās we have been sent digitally of our granddaughter and print of a few of the best and then put them in an album for when she is 18 or 21, whenever. Hopefully she will appreciate it in the future.
Iām sure she will.
What also is important is to label photos. I have so many old / VERY old photos (elderly ladies in long black dresses, hair under lace caps / serious men in dark suits and high wing collars) . They are without doubt my family - great grand parents, maybe even great great grandparents but I will never know, because of course at the time everyone knew who they were, so there are no names.
I did find an old envelope with SWALK written across the backā¦ those were the daysā¦
Nothing embarrassing to come back and haunt me, thoughā¦
Still in contact with one old boyfriend from when we were both 14 and thought we would rule the world one day ā¦ 
Nowadays, we have very different views on many thingsā¦ including Brexitā¦ but weāre still friends.
Thatās just super. I envy you that. I knew some fabulous young men and didnāt always appreciate them as I should have done!
Thatās true. I have a number of mysterious photos.
Unfortunately my partner doesnāt appreciate me still keeping contact with men friends from my past 
But I do still have some letters and lots of photos from the past - every now and then I do a cull and try to write on the back who/where they all are - who was that young, slim, blonde girl knocking back the booze at Donington Monsters of Rock festival? Oh, it was me! 
I have all mine from my husband in the late sixties, we lived 35 miles apart which could have been the other end of the world in those days. I also have my Dadās to my Mum from before the war and during, there was literally a poem written in pencil on the back of a fag packet! I found them after they both had died but didnāt read them for a bout 6 years as I felt I was intruding on their privacy. I never realised how romantic my old Dad was and glad he got his girl in the end after trying so hard!