Everyone is feeling the mental toll of the pandemic and a politically turbulent year, but it’s just as important to check in on yourself as it is to check on your friends. Sometimes your thoughts and feelings are too heavy to say out loud, or you just want to keep them private. Writing down your thoughts and feelings and putting them out into the world can lift some weight off your mind.

1. Find a piece of paper, a writing utensil, and an envelope.
2. Create your own secret code/language. Do this by assigning random symbols to each letter of the alphabet. The more random the symbols, the more secret your code will be.
3. Think about something that’s weighing on your mind or heart —something happening in the world, an embarrassing thing you said, a fear, or something new and exciting. Try to think of something that you haven’t spoken aloud.
4. Please write it down. Then use your code language to transcribe your letter. You can also skip transcription and write it directly in your code.
5. Please take a photo of your coded letter and post to the submission form at the top of this page!
6. Seal just the letter in an envelope.
7. Now you have a secret letter! Give the letter to someone you trust to hold your secret. Destroy your code’s key to keep the letter secret forever.

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