Thus, for Chris, as for many emigrants, his letters became an embodiment of those from whom he was separated. The act of letter writing became a substitute for the relationships he left behind in Denmark. The letters allowed Chris to reconstruct his past and present in a new narrative, as he made a new life and formed new relationships in Canada. Like so many other migrants deprived of the face-to-face contact they enjoyed with loved ones, Chris learned how to maintain vital relationships through letters.

Chris also learned how to relieve the anxieties of those he had left behind. Many immigrant letters do not tell the whole story—they choose to recount, for example, only the most uplifting parts of their experiences in a new country, and to downplay the difficulties. Chris shared in this tradition. We know, for example, that his first few days in Canada were quite difficult, yet in his letter to his mother, he chose not to tell her how alone and lost he felt.