It's called Myanmar today, so I find myself in Burma now Myanmar at 10 years old.

And this is when my overseas adventures began when my father was stationed at the American Embassy there and at a special event for foreign dignitaries.

I was introduced to the Russian diplomat, and he immediately wrapped me in a warm embrace, my face smothered in his white military uniform.

And it was then that I received my very first true Russian bear hug.

Now, this was a period of time that you may remember as the Cold War, when Russians were the evil other.

But a bear hug changed all that for me.

My name is Jennifer Richmond, and today I work is an international relations specialist.

Since my time in me, Amar, I've lived in five countries and I've worked in 20 others, and I've learned how to connect to people very different from me.

For example, in my overseas working travel, I was recently helping American clients find foreign investors, and that took me to India during the nobody holiday.

Now, during nobody, you dance for nine nights, and so I dance.

Holding hands with strangers who became friends who became investors now as a Texan is pretty much assumed that I like iced tea.

But my appreciation of T started in a faraway land.

And as I close my eyes right now, I can still feel the firm touch of Japanese hands Tien and obi around my waist to wear a kimono for a traditional tea ceremony.

And then there was the time that I received the blessings of God.

Nesh, the half man, half elephant, God of wisdom from a Hindu priest touch on my forehead at a temple in India.

Our differences abound, but through experiences like a common touch, I developed relationships that I continue to carry with me today.

But we don't need to travel overseas to have these experiences.

Another pop quiz for you.

How many languages are spoken in American homes?

A.

243 be 352 or C 497 according to the U.

S.

Census Bureau.

As of November 2015 there, over 350 languages spoken in American homes.

So if you guess B, you got it.

And Kenneth Prewitt, a former director of the U.

S Census Bureau, in a PBS interview, said, We are on our way to becoming the first country in history that is literally made up of every part of the world.

America is truly a nation of differences while working for a global intelligence firm.

Understanding these differences in how they lead to conflict was part of my job description.

And so I cut my finger on the pulse.

Ah, political disruption around the globe.

I was once even accused of helping start a small scale revolution in China called the Jasmine Revolution.

Yeah, my son thinks that's kind of cool and let him know I didn't do it.

But he still entertains the thought that maybe I might be a James Bond kind of a mom, and he even wrote us a letter letting us know that he, too, had become a secret agent.

It's so easy to focus on our differences and see them as obstacles.

But finding the common threads and our differences is what I see as the foundation for the Great American multicultural Experiment.

It's how we we've ourselves together into one nation.

It is three united in the United States of America, and today I find myself troubled by our growing differences and political views.

And I start to wonder, Could my experiences overseas make a difference here at home?

These divisions really hit home for me when I saw my son struggling to navigate our family's different political ideologies.

And sadly, I don't think I'm alone here.

I don't think I'm the only one who's had a Cold War broke out among their family and among their friends.

So let's pause for a second and ask ourselves, How did we get here?

According to a 2018 Rasmussen Reports survey of 1000 American voters, about 1/3 think another civil war is likely.

Wow, I just that for a second and part of our growing division stems from geographical differences.

A 2014 Pew study showed that we are self sorting into more liberal urban areas and more conservative rule in suburban areas.

Now let's add the digital neighborhoods we inhabit.

According to a 2019 hidden tribes report, social media reinforces our existing opinions and worldviews, elevating the lattice voices in limiting genuine interpersonal interaction to those who may think differently.

We live near like minded people.

We spend our time online with other like minded people.

Well, maybe No wonder we're out of touch, connecting with those who think differently, speak differently and vote differently.

And despite being uber connected, it turns out we're probably lonelier.

According to a 2019 American Psychological Association study, serious distress and suicidal outcomes increased 71% among those aged 18 to 25 between 2008 and 2017.

This is not okay with me, and I don't think I need another pop quiz to No, it's not okay with you either.

So what do we do about this loss of connection to people in general and especially people different from us?

My experiences have shown that, indeed, we, you and me can take steps to build relationships, heal divisions and maybe even save lives.

When my son was in third grade, we came up with one solution.

We started a pin pal exchange with his school in a school in Vietnam.

He couldn't believe that his Vietnamese pen power liked pizza pizza.

It was such a small connection, but its impact was huge.

It's time we reboot how we connect.

And that is a simple as a few heartfelt words in a letter.

Really, you might be asking, really?

Can it be a simple as a note about pizza?

Really?

I think it can.

In a world of dizzying technology, something so analog so basic may be exactly what we need to reboot and reconnect to our common humanity.

Let me share with you how I reboot for me.

It kind of starts like a journal.

And there are numerous studies showing the benefits in journaling.

In fact, James Pennebaker, a psychologist at the University of Texas in the 1988 American Psychological Association study, found that personal journaling was not only a stress management tool, but it also strengthened immune cells, among other health benefits.

So words from the heart really can heal both mentally and physically.

Do you want to know who else Journal?

Here's a short list of a few notables.

Albert Einstein, Marie Curie, John F.

Kennedy, Ida B.

Wells, Chris Martin and, of course, Anne Frank.

Add yourself to this list and think about taking it one step further.

Imagine what could happen if you turn your journal entries into letters or notes, you get the benefits of journaling for yourself, and maybe you touch someone else.

No one asked you to remember back to the last time you received a hand written letter or a note, and remember how it made you feel.

I recently conducted us pull on social media, which I know super scientific of me.

And in this poll, I asked my connections.

When is the last time they received a hand written letter or a note out of 45 people of different ages, ethnicities and so on?

40% said had been over five years, since they'd received a hand written letter or a note, and that's not really that surprising.

A 2018 study by the U.

S Post office showed that household correspondences have declined 61% between 2001 and 2016.

But back to my pool of the 60% that said it had been within five years since they'd received a hand written letter note, many commented that it was a let a holiday card, a thank you card, a letter from church or a letter from a grand parent and when I then asked if they like receiving letters or notes or, you know, whatever take it or leave it.

Everyone expressed their appreciation of the written word.

Without exception, it's time to reboot how we connect in.

Each of us can write a few words in this connection.

When we share, our inner thoughts are truth.

Our vulnerability could be the social bomb that heals our divisions with a common touch.

Letters connect across the distance in difference between cities and countries and between hearts and minds.

It really is kind of magic and in hand written form.

You can actually hold on to these thoughts physically, touch them and save them for reflection.

And often they become memories that we reimagine and passed down the family tree.

My family still has the uncle the letters my great uncle wrote while flying overseas during World War Two.

Unlike his plane that was lost over the Atlantic Ocean, his words remain forever with us.

But you're busy.

I get it right.

So start simple.

Start with a note and then you have to worry about getting a cramp in your hand.

As you work back up your handwriting muscles.

I like to keep a pack of notecards handy, and sometimes they just serve as a personal journal and get tucked into a book for me to revisit later.

And by the way, notes make great bookmarks and other times I get tucked into an envelope addressed and a fixed with a stand.

Now I have to confess.

Most of my notes are digital.

I do try to write one hand written note a week, and if I think about it, one note a week and that's 52 opportunities to touch someone in a year, even one a month.

And that's 12 opportunities in a year.

24 2 years.

And so on the time it takes.

It's just but a few moments.

But the impact is timeless.

Now, if you need more inspiration to write.

A 2014 study by the Association of Psychological Sciences shows that writing by hand results in better performance on conceptual assessments.

Translation.

You're smarter when you're right, and the time has real payback.

So take the time to reboot how you connect with just a few words, but you may be thinking, all right, What would I say?

What do you journal about I'm guessing it's probably not about politics.

So share your feelings on a crush or even a heartbreak, or try asking a thoughtful question.

My favorite is if you could have any superpower, What would it be for me?

It would be that I could speak all the languages of the world fluently.

Shocker.

I know.

Ask the question yourself and see what unfolds.

Still needs some help.

How about this?

Are you a cat or a dog person?

Me dog?

Definitely dog, but more specifically pugs.

I mean, seriously, How can you be unhappy when you see this face?

Although I may be the only happy one in this relationship, so you may be thinking now who do I send it to?

Well, a neighbor may be a good place to start, even if the sign in the yard or the bumper sticker on their car makes you cringe.

Who knows?

Maybe they have a superpower to share, but here's another fun idea.

I recently started a letter exchange with a friend in California.

My most prolific pen pal.

He loves ancestry, and as he maps out his family tree, he came across his own shocker.

George Washington and even Robert E.

Lee were distant cousins, and he encouraged me to do my own search.

And I've got to tell you, while building my family tree, finding old records like records of ancestors in the Revolutionary War and ship records of ancestors and their passage from Scotland to America, I felt like I was building up my own family empire.

Now my empire wouldn't rival those found on shows that game of Thrones.

But my empire I can access on an act and connecting to realize relatives across distance indifference.

I now have several new pen pals who call me cousin and get this my cousin An even writes Children's books on unity and communication.

So how's that for a coincidence?

It must be our d.

N A.

And when I was struggling with writer's block, I asked her advice, and she said to take a break and to listen to Princess Musicology, who knew a little solo dance party was all it took to get my groove back and his prints sings Tian, the wine, the mind, and it's probably clear to you by now that my writing is probably a little bit better than my dance, so with over 26 million people who have done a commercial DNA tests, you're sure to make a connection.

And who knows?

Maybe you'll get some princely inspiration in my experience with letters.

There's something so genuine and written conversation so rich, even more so sometimes than face to face conversation when you may be worried about the stain on your shirt, if your fly's unzipped or if you have a booger in your nose, which is my own personal phobia for yet in a letter, like writing a journal, there are no interruptions.

Instead, there's quietness and purpose.

I find it easier to share my real self.

And for the reader, the time and distance offers a better opportunity to reflect meaningfully.

In our day and age, where communication is immediate, a letter is a deliberate and even rebellious act.

And in the time and space created in a letter, relationships they're found is our differences.

Divisions and even loneliness fade.

You don't need a Russian bear hug to touch someone, but if you get the opportunity, I do suggest you take it in a letter.

You could touch hearts and minds without even leaving your chair.

Anne Frank's Journal letters from an addict trouble across time and distance to inspire us about freedom.

My uncle still shares his thoughts with us even years after his plane was lost at sea in a cousin's letter.

Shares a Key to Unlocking Writer's Block Can you imagine a world filled with these small human connections?

Each letter or note revealing the shared love of pizza, pugs or prints in a letter.

We can actively choose peace over war, connection over loneliness.

We can make a difference.

You and me.

It is time to reboot how we connect.

It starts with a few words.

It really is just that simple.

And now it's your turn.

I hope you write me a letter.

I'll even take a short note and let me know how it goes.

Thank you.