When I was 8 years old, my second-grade class participated in a pen pal assignment that matched me with a girl named Naa Ashirifia from Ghana.
At the time, there was no social media for a rapid response, no texts to drop a quick note, and no simple phone call that could last for hours. And although the back-and-forth correspondence wasn’t immediate, the connection was instant.
We were growing up on different parts of the globe: me in Youngstown, Ohio, and Naa Ashirifia in Accra, the capital of Ghana. Still, we quickly bonded over the small but important details of our pre-adolescent lives.
Growing up, I never imagined that we would meet in Ghana 30 years later.
We formed a strong bond through written letters
Dontaira Terrell
More than three decades ago, I sent my first letter to Naa Ashirifia. I still remember carefully addressing each envelope in my best penmanship and double-checking the address a million times before mailing it.
Sometimes I used my own allowance to pay for postage and proudly walked up to the post office counter with a huge smile.
Then came the wait. I would mark an estimated reply time on my calendar and count the weeks until I could run to the mailbox again.
Our letters covered the latest trends, school, family, music, and the events unfolding in our respective corners of the world. Sometimes, we sent pictures, friendship bracelets, stickers, and keepsakes that crossed borders long before we ever could.
One time, I opened a package to find a beautiful, handcrafted blue-marble beaded necklace with a matching bracelet. My eyes lit up like a kid on Christmas morning.
Of course, receiving the present in the mail was exciting, especially as a child. But it was the time, thoughtfulness, and intention behind it that stayed with me most.
For three years, we wrote to each other consistently. As life progressed and seasons changed, our letter exchanges became less frequent — maybe once or twice a year if we were lucky. Eventually, the anticipation faded, and more years passed than I could count.
30 years after exchanging our first letters, we found a way to meet in person
Dontaira Terrell
As time passed, we became friends on LinkedIn and Facebook. We occasionally exchanged quick hellos and catch-ups, but we still had never met face-to-face.
However, I saw the perfect opportunity to organize a meetup when one of my college friends planned a trip to Ghana to celebrate a milestone birthday.
Once everything was finalized, I reached out to Naa Ashirifia on Facebook to tell her I would be visiting. I knew there was no way I was leaving the country without connecting with her in person.
We exchanged WhatsApp information and agreed on a date and time to meet at the hotel restaurant where I was staying.
When she walked into the restaurant, our eyes instantly locked. In those first few seconds, I experienced a wave of emotions.
At first, I was a bit nervous. What if we didn’t have anything to talk about? What if the conversation fell flat?
But once we started talking, we immediately clicked. It didn’t feel like meeting someone for the first time. It felt like two childhood friends reconnecting and picking up exactly where they had left off.
Dontaira Terrell
We hugged, laughed, and shared stories about the lives we had once only been able to imagine through letters. We chatted about our parents and siblings, our shared love for travel, and the experiences that had shaped us as adults. I was surprised that she still remembered every member of my family by name.
Neither of us brought our old letters, but technology gave us a new way into each other’s worlds. We scrolled through photos and videos of our everyday lives and captured new memories together.
When I boarded my 15-hour flight back to the States, I realized the connection we created as young girls had survived all these years, and I was grateful to experience the place that lived in my mind’s eye — and my mailbox — for three decades.
The letters may have stopped, but our connection has stood the test of time, creating a new chapter of friendship — no longer as kids, but as adults on this big, beautiful journey of life.
Nine months have passed since we met in person, and between Instagram and WhatsApp, we’ve been able to stay in touch consistently. Although we haven’t made solid plans to reunite, we’re both confident that it won’t take another 30 years to see each other again.
