My last replies to my penpals were around June or July. I can't even remember. I did leave a note at the end of my last replies that I'll be busy and will take a longer time than usual to respond. That I promise I'll respond no matter what. I didn't expect to be gone for months. I've been the busiest these past months. Being busy a lot has made me less prone to overthink and spiral down to the dark abyss. It's not like I didn't want to write a letter for an hour. It's just that I haven't had the energy, and at some point, the letters have piled up, so I keep putting off replying to them. I'm overwhelmed.

I feel guilty--torn between ghosting or replying this Christmas break, when I'll be less busy. I am planning to send them a quick note that I'll make sure to reply to them this Christmas period, something that I should have done months ago.

The thing is, I don't have energy anymore and I don't think I can continue writing even if I reply to them this Christmas. It would be just another cycle of one reply and long months hiatuses. I'll be shifting careers next year. I'll be a teacher, and first year in teaching is usually the most hectic year for a new teacher. I'll write again in the future, but I'm not sure. I don't want to lead my penpals on anymore. I feel conflicted by writing back to them after a long time, only to say good bye. But I don't want to ghost them any further, esp. since I promised to write back.

Not sure if this is the right flair, but I would want to know your thoughts or tips. How should I deal with this?