Open-when letter ideas.

Pick five to eight. Each one is a short letter, half a page, written for a specific moment she will actually have. Here are fifty, with what goes inside.

The classic five

1. Open when you miss me. One specific thing you miss, and the date you see each other next.
2. Open when you're mad at me. Written while you are not fighting. "Whatever I did, I probably did it. Here's what's true anyway."
3. Open when you can't sleep. Something boring and calm. A story from when you were a kid. No questions.
4. Open when you need a laugh. The dumbest thing that has ever happened to you, told straight.
5. Open on the day I get back. The plan, hour by hour, starting at the airport.

For hard days

6. Open when you had a bad day. You are not fixing it. "Here's what I know about you on bad days."
7. Open when you're doubting yourself. Three things you watched her do that she has forgotten.
8. Open when you're doubting us. Why you are not. Plainly.
9. Open when you're sick. Instructions. Soup, blanket, the show. "Text me a photo of the soup."
10. Open when you're homesick. A description of home, the specific version: the porch, the dog, the sound of the gate.
11. Open when you're stressed about work. One time she handled something harder than this.
12. Open when you're crying. Short. "It's okay. I'm here. Read the 'can't sleep' one next."
13. Open when you feel alone. The list of people who would drop everything. Start with you.
14. Open when you've had a fight with your mom. You are on her side. Also, one nice thing about her mom.
15. Open when you're scared. The time you were scared and she was the one who was calm.

For good days

16. Open when you got good news. You already knew she would. Say what you want to do to celebrate.
17. Open when you're happy. Just enjoy it. One sentence. No agenda.
18. Open when you're proud of yourself. "Good. You should be. Here's what I'd say if I were there."
19. Open when you did the hard thing. Written ahead for the thing she is dreading.
20. Open on a sunny day. Go outside. Here is the thing you want her to look at.

For dates and milestones

21. Open on your birthday. A real birthday letter. See birthday letters.
22. Open on our anniversary. One moment from the year.
23. Open on Valentine's Day. Something about her, not about love.
24. Open on Christmas morning. What you would be doing if you were there, in order.
25. Open on New Year's Eve. One thing for next year. Small.
26. Open on the first day of your new job. You will be fine. Here is why, specifically.
27. Open the night before the exam. Go to bed. You know it.
28. Open at the halfway point. Of the deployment, the semester, the contract. "Downhill from here."
29. Open when it's been a month. One month of letters. Here is the plan for the next.
30. Open the night before I get home. Don't clean. Don't cook. Just be there.

For moments

31. Open when you're bored. A list of ten things to do, one of them absurd.
32. Open when you're hungry. A recipe, in your words, of the thing you make her.
33. Open when you can't decide. "Flip a coin. Notice which side you're hoping for. Do that."
34. Open when you need a pep talk. Coach voice. Keep it short.
35. Open when you're in the car. A song to put on and why.
36. Open when you're at the airport. Where to stand so I see you first.
37. Open when it's raining. The rain story. Everyone has one.
38. Open when you're wearing my hoodie. "Keep it."
39. Open when the dog is being an idiot. One story about the dog being an idiot.
40. Open when you need a reason. Here is one. Just one. It is enough.

For the relationship

41. Open when you want to know how I feel. The love letter. See how to write a love letter.
42. Open when you want to know what I remember. The first time you saw her, in detail.
43. Open when you wonder what I'm doing right now. A guess, by time of day.
44. Open when you're thinking about the future. One picture of it. Specific. A porch, a town, a Tuesday.
45. Open when you want to hear me say it. "I love you." That is the whole letter.
46. Open when you're not sure I meant it. You did. Here is how to tell.
47. Open when you need to be reminded why. Why the distance. Once. Not again.
48. Open when you want to write back. Five questions to answer in the next letter.
49. Open when you've read all the others. The last one. What happens next. The date.
50. Open when you want to. No rules. Something you have never said.

How to actually make the set

At NotAText each letter is its own order: type it, pick the handwriting, pick an envelope color so she can tell them apart (white for happy, kraft for hard, cream linen for the big one), and put the "Open when…" line as the first line of the letter. Mail the whole set to yourself so it arrives sealed at your door and hand it over, or mail each one straight to her on the week it fits. Postage included. Open-when letters.