How long to you continue to send Christmas cards to people you have not met for years?

I was thinking about this the other week whilst writing cards. I worked with a girl, when we were girls, who moved several hundred miles away before I had my first child 40 years ago.
We have exchanged cards since she moved, never any contact other than that and I wouldn’t know her if I fell over her. It seems ridiculous but I don’t want to just stop, her card is a constant in my life.

For the past five years or so, I’ve received a card from one of my oldest friends with nothing but her name in it. I’d considered not sending a card but couldn’t quite bring myself to do so.

The other day I received an email, typed completely in capital letters, explaining that she had started losing her sight about seven years ago so couldn’t write much any more, but she has now found a way to send emails.

I can’t tell you how thrilled I was to hear from her. ❤️

“Elspeth and Michael “ in Edinburgh - if you are reading this please try again with your old St Andrew’s friends. All the information I gleaned from their cards was that 1) they were both still alive and 2) presumably together!
I’m afraid I stopped about 4 years ago when no card appeared - but of course it could have got lost in the post and they might have thought we had cut them out!
If I say The Vennel - it might ring a bell.
Also Geoff and Inez - Geoff worked with Paw back in the 70’s and Christmas cards were exchanged every year. Ginny was born, and featured on the cards for some years but I have never seen her and I imagine she has children of her own.
All it takes is one year without a card and the chain is broken- I hope none of the (former) recipients took offence.

I send cards to a couple of people I haven’t seen since the 1970’s (school days), a couple to people I haven’t seen since the 1980’s (University days) and some ex-colleagues I haven’t seen for a decade.

If I don’t receive a card back I always continue for a couple of years, incase their card is lost in the post (our post is notoriously unreliable).

Every year we receive a card addressed to the previous owners of our house. Sadly they both died in 2003, before we bought the house. We have no way of advising ‘Eileen and Bob’ that their friends have passed away, because they don’t put a return address on their envelope.
Neither do Eileen and Bob seem to mind that they don’t get a card in return.

I’m like Septimia - I send a few to people I haven’t seen for 40 or 50 years. I tried stopping, but then they sent agitated messages enquiring whether I was all right. If someone stops sending them to me, I stop sending to them.

I moved into my last house in summer 2003 and out again in October, 2019. The previous owners of the house were going to live in Spain. Every year a Xmas card came for them from people who only put the first names. Obviously, they had not any actual contact for at the very least, 16 years.
Bet a card went to the house this year also.

I'd like to put in a plea to those dealing with the affairs of someone who has died. If you can, please go through their Xmas card list and write with the news. A simple word processed slip is better than wondering what has happened. I keep in touch with many elderly people, and hate it when I hear nothing for a couple of years. I do know that illness, especially dementia can make it difficult. I bless the son of an old colleague who wrote to say that his mum no longer understood about sending cards, but he thanked me for staying in touch over many years.

I still send cards to people I haven't seen for 40 or 50 years - as long as they're still sending to me. It's one way of finding out if they're still alive!!

I keep last year's cards and can check whether anyone is missing from this year's collection. If so, then that's the time to assume that communications have ceased for one reason or another.

I send a card to someone who I was friends with before I got married. She moved the other end of the country when she married, we always kept in touch with a newsy letter in with the card.

However, for two years she didn’t enclose a letter, and last year I just wrote a brief note in the card. She wrote on hers she would definitely e Mail in the new year. Still awaiting the email!

I have sent my card to her, again just a couple of sentences written on it, but if no news this year will not write anything again.

It’s a shame, as we always had plenty to write about before, and a quick e Mail only takes a few minutes. I was always interested to get updates on her life, work and family, but I suppose we all move on.

I decided this year, with few exceptions, to stop sending cards to people I will never see again- it has saved me a fortune.

One of my card recipients, I haven’t seen since 1977. But we communicate every year and have followed each other’s families throughout all the years. Likewise my school girl friend who emigrated to Canada in 1971 , we still keep in contact.

But there are folk that I have met over the years with whom cards were exchanged but have since dropped off. A couple embarrassingly moved and I lost their address.

It always seems odd to me to get a card from someone I never see, if there is no message or news with it. Some formerly very good friends did this for years. Even though I would have liked to keep in touch properly, they didn’t reciprocate. In the end it stopped, as one year, they sent cards really early, saying don’t send to us as we are going away this year, abroad somewhere. Gave me a reason to stop sending.

We do not go on the kind of holidays that end up with holiday acquaintances on the card list. Most are family and long standing friends where contact, however tenuous, still continues outside the Christmas season. This year, apart from those who have died, I have dropped someone who didn't send a card last year and didn't respond to a couple of emails during the year. I assume she may have died, but we know her ex-husband and they had remained close after the divorce so would expect to be told if she had died.

Well yes I would continue to send a card each year,

N0, I wouldn't. If they are only holiday acquaintances and you have no real chance or desire to meet them again, stop sending cards.

I have stopped sending cards or e-mails to those who don't write back. Most people only keep in touch for a while, then stop.

Those we don't hear from are either uninterested in keeping up or have moved.

I think at this current time I wouldn't wipe anyone from my card list, indeed have added some on who I think might be feeling isolated.

We still get cards from people we met on a cruise many years ago, with a letter telling us what they have been up to during the year. We probably will never meet again, but I enjoy catching up once a year.

its nice to keep in touch ,send one back. distant memories are good .not many people left in my address book ,so make someone happy and send one back..