[One Day Ten Thousand Steps One Thousand Characters a Day] A Letter to Myself One Year Later 'Neurin Uchteong'

Installation at 2024 Sookmyung Women's University Entrance Ceremony
Also Easily Found at Tourist Spots Like Busan and Gyeongju
Used by Private Companies for Morale Boosting and More

‘This mail will be delivered one year later.’ Slow letters sent to the future self are being dispatched all over the country. In a digital society where everything moves quickly, this allows people to experience the aesthetics of leisure and slowness, receiving positive responses not only from tourist spots but also from companies and schools.

At the 2024 academic year entrance ceremony of Sookmyung Women’s University held on the 19th at Jangchung Gymnasium in Jung-gu, Seoul, a ‘slow mailbox’ where freshmen send letters to themselves one year later was installed. The school plans to keep the letters for one year and then deliver them to the students’ respective departments. A representative from Sookmyung Women’s University explained, “We believe that the students’ self-determination will be best expressed at the entrance ceremony, which is why we decided to operate the slow mailbox.”

The slow mailbox can also be easily found at Gwangalli Beach, a representative tourist destination in Busan. The mailbox, shaped like a snail sculpture, is called ‘Daltok.’ After writing on a Daltok-exclusive postcard, folding it in half, and sealing it with double-sided tape, it is placed into the mailbox slot and will be sent during the first week of the corresponding month one year later. Stories vary, such as a soldier receiving a postcard written on his first military leave during his last leave, or a grandfather receiving letters from his daughter and granddaughter who visited briefly from the U.S. one year later. Visitors who return to Gwangalli with the Daltok postcard received one year later can also receive a ‘Sweet Treasure Box’ containing snacks at the tourist information center.

The Gyeongsangbuk-do Culture and Tourism Organization sent out 11,553 slow mailbox postcards installed in the Bomun Tourist Complex in Gyeongju last month. The postcards were classified into 11,470 domestic and 83 overseas. The front of the postcards sent this time featured major attractions in Gyeongbuk, such as Cheongsong Juwangsan and Cheongdo Eupseong. The slow mailbox located at Hoban Square in the Bomun Tourist Complex has been in operation since 2015, sending postcards domestically and internationally twice a year. The cumulative number of postcards sent over nine years has reached about 100,000.

Some companies use slow mailboxes to boost employee morale. Ecopro held an event until the 5th of last month where employees wrote letters to themselves, their families, or acquaintances one year later. This is called the ‘Slow Mailbox sent by Ekko.’ Ekko is Ecopro’s representative character. About 140 employees participated in this event, writing letters to loved ones, people they are grateful for, or themselves. Ecopro plans to deliver the letters one year later to provide an opportunity to reminisce.