Dear Jack

Chapter One

"Dear Jack,
I guess that's how you start a letter? I'm really not sure but that seems appropriate. My name is Alex and I am a 21-year-old university student / barista writing to you, an army veteran, for a community project. An ex-army vet in my community wanted to try to do something for our current serving troops to help keep their spirits up and give them a touch of home. He said its what he missed most when he was serving.

At first, I thought this project was such a shitty idea. Like what army veteran has time to write to a stupid uni student and why would they bother to make time? Surely these letters are an attempt to aid the war effort. There is no way that what I'm writing will make it all the way over to the wars in Iraq and your letter makes it back to me. It just seems silly to me. But I was talking with my grandpa about this project and he got super excited for me. Apparently, that's how he kept in touch with his crush after he got drafted for WWII, who turned out to be my grandma. They wrote each other constantly, sending love and well wishes and fortified their bond for life. And it got me thinking, maybe, if this turns out to be real, we might have a chance at building a friendship of some kind. I like that idea a lot.

Anyways, I would like to tell you a bit about myself and ask you some questions if that's okay. About me, I guess I'm your typical boy. I like to listen to music, play guitar and hide away on my own. I have a friend Ryan, whom I've known since we were young, but he's away at a different university school so we kind of drifted apart. I still think he is important to me. I have one brother Tom, however he passed away not too long ago. And I have my Mum. My father is overseas back in the UK. My mum moved us to Baltimore after they separated when I was 10. So, it's really just my mother and I now.

So, I would like to ask, only with your permission and if you feel comfortable, how old are you, what kind of hobbies are you in to and a little about your family. Oh, and what got you into enlisting and serving in the first place? I hope that it's not too much to ask.

Man, I hope this letter reaches you safely.

- Alex

I took one final check over my letter and let out a sigh, I still have my doubts about this project. I mean, there is a whole war going on over there, who in their right mind wants to write to a stranger for community project; a community they're probably not even apart of? I can understand if some family write to their loved ones back home but that's it. But after Grandpa told me about how grandma kept writing him after he got drafted kind of inspired me. He spoke with such delight, a smile spread across his face the entire time. He told me he and grandma kept their letters and still have them to this day. He will occasionally read over them when he's missing her.

I folded the letter up, placed it in the envelope and mailed it off at the post office. Its such a strange feeling, actually mailing a physical piece of paper. Practically everything is digital now. The digital world claims to keep people connected, but I feel we're all more disconnected than ever. There's hardly a physical connection in life anymore. And I guess that's why Mr Roberts started this project. These army vets are digitally and physically isolated, nothing really grounding them and keeping them in touch with home and civilian life. I guess holding a real piece of paper brings them back to reality. And maybe that's why I took part in the project; to make some kind of connection.  

At least my therapist said it was a good idea.