Are greeting cards still relevant?

Although a greeting message is just a click away these days, nothing beats the excitement of actually receiving a physical card in the mailbox.

The sentimental value attached to a self-written card is why Abang Shahrizan Abang Halil chooses to continue the tradition of sending greeting cards during Hari Raya.

“Since a long time ago, we practice the tradition of hanging Raya cards in the house. I have been collecting them since the 1980s and every one of them is meaningful,” he said.

For him, the act of sending cards is still relevant and even more significant now due to the effort taken to choose, write and mail the card, despite having the ease of sending one’s wishes through e-cards, Facebook, SMS and Whatsapp.

“For me, it is relevant. A person takes the effort to send a message across and to seek forgiveness during Hari Raya,” he said.

The practice of sending greeting cards is fading fast but Shahrizan hopes that the younger generation will appreciate the meaning of the gesture and revive the tradition.

“Raya cards are still sold everywhere. Take some time off during the weekend and send a card to your friends. We can use our creativity in writing the message.”

On the other hand, Aslaniza Mohd Asri feels that sending greeting cards is ‘too slow’ and inconvenient.

“Whatsapp is faster. To send a Raya greeting card, we need to get the stamp and mail it. That is why I don’t send greeting cards anymore.”

“I think it complicates thing, especially now that we live in such as modern world where everything is done swiftly, “ she added.

Meanwhile, Irdawati Sulaiman said she still sends greeting cards, but only for close friends and family.

“I only send Raya greeting cards to special people like my husband, close friends and family members. It is good that we retain such culture so that we can reminisce the person who sent us the card,” she added.