Lesson 59
Collecting
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1Lesson 59
2Collecting
3What in particular does a person gain when he or she becomes a serious collector?
4People tend to amass possessions, sometimes without being aware of doing so.
5Indeed they can have a delightful surprise when they find something useful which they did not know they owned.
6Those who never have to move house become indiscriminate collectors of what can only be described as clutter.
7They leave unwanted objects in drawers, cupboards and attics for years,
8 in the belief that they may one day need just those very things.
9As they grow old, people also accumulate belongings for two other reasons,
10lack of physical and mental energy, both of which are essential in turning out and throwing away, and sentiment.
11Things owned for a long time are full of associations with the past,
12perhaps with relatives who are dead, and so they gradually acquire a value beyond their true worth.
13Some things are collected deliberately in the home in an attempt to avoid waste.
14Among these I would list string and brown paper,
15kept by thrifty people when a parcel has been opened, to save buying these two requisites.
16Collecting small items can easily become a mania.
17I know someone who always cuts sketches out from newspapers of model clothes that she would like to buy if she had the money.
18As she is not rich, the chances that she will ever be able to afford such purchases are remote;
19but she is never sufficiently strongminded to be able to stop the practice.
20It is a harmless habit,
21but it litters up her desk to such an extent that every time she opens it, loose bits of paper fall out in every direction.
22Collecting as a serious hobby is quite different and has many advantages.
23It provides relaxation for leisure hours, as just looking at one's treasures is always a joy.
24One does not have to go outside for amusement, since the collection is housed at home.
25Whatever it consists of, stamps, records, first editions of books, china, glass,
26antique furniture, pictures, model cars, stuffed birds, toy animals, there is always something to do in connection with it,
27from finding the right place for the latest addition, to verifying facts in reference books.
28This hobby educates one not only in the chosen subject, but also in general matters which have some bearing on it.
29There are also other benefits.
30One wants to meet like-minded collectors, to get advice, to compare notes, to exchange articles, to show off the latest find.
31So one's circle of friends grows.
32Soon the hobby leads to travel, perhaps to a meeting in another town,
33possibly a trip abroad in search of a rare specimen, for collectors are not confined to any one country.
34Over the years,
35one may well become an authority on one's hobby and will very probably be asked to give informal talks to little gatherings
36and then, if successful, to larger audiences.
37In this way self-confidence grows, first from mastering a subject, then from being able to talk about it.
38Collecting, by occupying spare time so constructively, makes a person contented, with no time for boredom.