I Got Laid Off and Started Sending Mail Around the Country

Two months ago, I got laid off from the corporate career I had spent more than twenty years building.

And before anyone asks, no, I didn’t spiral.

At least not in the traditional sense.

Instead, I started mailing travel photos, stories, bookmarks, playlists, and tiny pieces of joy to women all over the country.

Honestly, it’s going surprisingly well.

Which is both comforting and slightly concerning for everyone who’s encouraging me to become a “responsible” adult.

But somewhere between the layoff, the uncertainty, and the realization that I really did not want to go back to building someone else’s dream full-time, something became very clear to me:

People are desperate for connection right now.

Not just an online connection.
Not another app.
Not another notification.
Not another algorithm fighting for our attention.

Real connection.

That’s how the Say Yes Mail Club was born.

It Started With a Feeling

Do you remember when getting mail used to be exciting?

Not bills.
Not political flyers.
Not another coupon book you immediately recycle.

I mean real mail.

The kind that arrived in a colorful envelope.
The kind you carried inside carefully.
The kind you opened at the kitchen counter before you even took your shoes off.

For me, it was things like Highlights magazine, postcards from family vacations, handwritten letters, and those rare moments when something arrived that felt chosen specifically for me.

I think we lost some of that.

And honestly, I miss it.

I miss anticipation.
I miss slowness.
I miss tangible things.
I miss the feeling of discovering a story instead of consuming content.

So I built something around that feeling.

What Actually Is the Say Yes Mail Club?

Every month, members receive a curated envelope inspired by one of my travel photographs from somewhere in the world.

Inside is:
💌 a fine art print from my travels
📚 a bookmark with book recommendations tied to the destination
✍️ a personal letter telling the story behind the image, the place, and whatever else is living in my brain that week

Sometimes it’s funny.
Sometimes emotional.
Sometimes reflective.
Sometimes it’s just me telling you about a tiny kitchen in Italy that changed the course of my entire afternoon.

The point isn’t perfection. The point is connection. The point is creating a tiny moment of beauty and curiosity in the middle of ordinary life.

Travel Changed My Life, But So Did Storytelling

I’ve spent years traveling the world with a camera in my hand.

And yes, I love the obvious things:
the cities, the landscapes, the food, the adventure, the iced coffees consumed in questionable quantities.

But what I really love are the stories.

The moments that almost don’t seem important while they’re happening.

The conversation with a stranger on a train.
The bookstore you wandered into because it started raining.
The tiny alleyway you almost skipped because you were tired, and there were a lot of stairs.
The feeling of sitting somewhere unfamiliar and suddenly realizing you feel more like yourself there than you have in months.

That’s the kind of travel I care about.

Not checklist travel.
Not luxury for the sake of luxury.
Not perfectly curated Instagram versions of life.

I care about the kind of experiences that remind you the world is bigger, softer, more beautiful, and more connected than you remembered.

And I realized something recently:

You don’t always need a plane ticket to access that feeling. Sometimes you just need a reminder that the world is still out there waiting for you.

Also, If We’re Being Honest…

Part of this entire thing is absolutely me trying to creatively avoid going back to a traditional 9-to-5 job, but there’s something deeply vulnerable about building a creative life in public.

Especially after a layoff.
Especially in your forties.
Especially when you’ve had a successful “real” career already.

But there’s also something incredibly freeing about deciding that joy, creativity, storytelling, art, travel, and connection are worthy things to build a business around.

I don’t think we’re supposed to stop dreaming just because we become adults.

I don’t think life is meant to become only errands, dishes, inboxes, and obligations.

I think we still deserve anticipation.
I think we still deserve beauty.
I think we still deserve whimsy.

And maybe that sounds dramatic for a monthly envelope full of travel stories.

But honestly? I don’t think it is.

A Tiny Piece of the World, Delivered to Your Door

The Say Yes Mail Club is for women who miss looking forward to things.

Women who love bookstores and coffee shops and stories and old cities and beautiful photographs.

Women who want more than doomscrolling and bad news in their mailbox.

Women who still believe small joys matter.

If that sounds like you, I’d love to send next month’s envelope your way.

Because the truth is, this strange little idea has already become something bigger than I expected.

Not just a subscription.
Not just mail.
Not just art.

A reminder that even in uncertain seasons, we can still create beautiful things.
And maybe even build a life around them.

With love, from the road,

Macey

P.S. If you join the Mail Club, just know you are directly supporting a woman attempting to pay her bills through travel photography and emotional support mail. Which honestly feels iconic.