Stamps.Com? No Thanks.

What a terrific idea. You can buy your U.S. postage stamps quickly and simply in your own home using your P.C. What a time saver! What nice solution to fighting the parking problem at the Post Office, and paying for stamps there after standing and waiting in line for many minutes.

Thanks, but no thanks. There is more at stake here than efficiency and convenience. I will continue to visit the U.S. Post Office.

For one thing the people behind the counter I now consider my friends. I want to greet them, joke with them, and compliment them. I want to communicate appreciation so that they know they are valued, and even loved. I do not want to leave them for quick generic postage stamps on the internet.

The second reason the Post Office will continue to be a part of my life is the beautiful postage stamps available there. Sending letters and other mail with a beautiful stamp is a quiet little joy. It feels like sending a gift along with my check to pay a bill. Adding a Mickey Mouse stamp, or one inscribed Alaska with a beautiful snowcapped Mt. Denali, is a tiny little act of beautifying the world. Maybe it will add a small touch of brightness to the recipient’s life.

The electronic world is amazing and awesome. Our lives have been profoundly blessed by the marvels of the computer and the cell phone. I thank God daily for these inventions. But Stamps.com is not for me. People are more important than quick stamps.