Deitiology is the collection and study of postcards. It’s a hobby I fell into by accident; I was browsing through an antique store when I found a card catalog cabinet stuffed full with old postcards, each only $1 or $2 each. I remember the jolt of excitement I felt as I flipped through them and realized that some of the cards bore postmarks from over 100 years ago. — it seems so cool to me that I can hold such a unique piece of history right in my hand, that I can buy it for just a couple bucks.

Most postcard collectors search for blank cards, pristine specimens, but I’m the opposite. I only collect cards with writing on the back, cards that have been posted and used. I specifically collect cards from Michigan, where I grew up and where I found the very first cards in my collection.

My oldest card was posted in 1905 from Saint Joseph, Michigan, to Mr. Charles A. DeWeise in Burlington, Iowa. “My dear husband,” it reads in faded, ornate script. “Mother has an offer of $1,000 lot cash for her home. As soon as we can settle business here we will be right home. I am lonesome for my boy. Answer my letter and be careful.”

The card isn’t in what many collectors would call good condition — it’s dented and creased. The photo, showing men fishing out of canoes on the St. Joseph River is a little blurry and smudged. But I treasure this card. It is 116 years old and a small snapshot into what life was like in the Midwest in 1905.

I like to imagine Mrs. DeWeise sitting at a writing desk in her mother’s home, penning a quick message to her spouse, just to give him some news and let him know she’s OK. I like to imagine Mr. DeWeise collecting the card from the post office, maybe carrying it around in his pocket because he, too, is lonesome for his partner. That’s what I like about collecting these postcards; the stories of who these people possibly were run wild in my imagination.

I’ve been slowly building my collection over the past year. I now have a dozen cards that are at least 100 years old and many more from the 1920s, 30s and 40s. Another one of my favorites bears a photo of moose in Isle Royale, the secluded island 56 miles off the shore of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The inscription is simple: “Boy oh boy, could we have some fun here.”

Collecting postcards takes patience. You spend a lot of time kneeling on antique store floors and sifting through box after box of cards, but it’s worth it when you find an interesting card, one that piques your interest for some reason or another. And being able to buy that little 3x5” piece of history feels special — to know that the words someone jotted down a century ago still survive and can still be treasured is both exhilirating and comforting.