Nowhere near as long as 72 years...but
I received a Christmas card from a friend a few years ago (sends me one every year). He sent it the last week of November. When I received it, I sent him one 2 days later. In February the following year, he tells me he just got it in the mail. He lives just outside of Huntsville and I live a few miles outside of Birmingham. It took his card 2 days to get to me, but mine took over 2 months to get to him...same distance.
Gotta love the USPS (not really).