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"Please don't reply to this mail" is the message in some of the auto-generated mails. Saves our time and energy. That's okay!

"Please don't reply to this mail" a scorned person writes to someone. Hmm.. matter's turned too serious to be ignored.

Apart from these two occasions, every other mail (or the archaic letter) has an unstated request of "Please do reply, would be waiting!" , which is most often conveniently and comfortably overlooked. Most of us understand that it is a courtesy to at least acknowledge the mail, if not to give it the detailed attention. Nevertheless, we're most inclined to miss the reply and then give ourselves a thousand and one reasons for not letting that happen, be it laziness or lack of interest or too busy or procrastination or indifference or whatever.

On the rarest of occasions though, there's a chance of learning the way through harshest experiences. A casual mail not getting reply might be a time saver, but what if you've attached far too much of importance to it? A silence - a complete void leading to a struggle to decide whether you were ignored (so that you can be humiliated) or missed (to let it go off ) or you weren't liked ( to feel sorry or reciprocate). You can't tune your response as emotions vacillate. Well, we keep missing, we keep offending and we do humiliate. Happens!

What's interesting is that this no-reply business elicits wrath from the giants too, they're human too!

Tagore, for instance has this to write to his unresponsive wife, "Thought you'd reply to me, at least by mistake!" - Sarcasm!

Any delay in response from Indira Gandhi, makes her father write, "You might be too busy, to give a reply" or "You're doing good? How's your health?" or something of that nature. Doubts hovering around of her well being.

Rilke seems to be prompt enough to offer his apologies to a young poet!

Kafka? No, we're not talking about him!

Have I read some other book that was collection of letters? I can't remember. Bad!