The hobby is a huge place, and there are many different types of things to collect, as I have discussed in the past. However, what keeps you collecting the objects that you collect? Is it the connection between you and the collectible, is it a memory from childhood that is etched in your mind like a craving into a tree Or, is it like a desire and passion for a loved one that you cant let go of? This is a key component to your personal collecting to remember and look back on from time to time.
For me personally my love of collecting started when I was young and asking my parents for change to go to the local store and buy a pack of 1988 Donruss among others. I still remember buying pack after pack of the most atrocious card ever created 1991 fleer. I loved collecting Cal Ripken jr as a kid because I respected his drive as a player and dedication to his team and the game of baseball. This would later be transitioned into my own life in the military working through injuries and dedication to those that I served with. However, this isn’t my heartbeat to collecting and this isn’t where my passion comes from.
The passion I have to collect the Colorado Rockies goes deep and has multiple facets and reasons as to why it will remain my reason to be in the hobby and collect what I love. I grew up in Colorado when the Rockies were an expansion team, this started it, then while in the army I was stationed back in Colorado at Fort Carson. This too added to my love and desire to collect Colorado Rockies cards and memorabilia. The one thing that drew me to was taking my son to his first baseball game after I returned from my second deployment. It was May 2008 and I had just returned to a place that did not feel like home. It felt weird, and I had many thoughts and feelings that made Life in the “real world” more than I could bear. Then I had a desire to take this child that I did not have a connection with to a game. He was 2 ½ years old and was my only child at the time. I was struggling in the marital department, so I went and bought tickets to the game and brought him when the day came.
So the day came and I packed up my son and we grabbed his little mit , along with mine and headed up to Denver. We made the 40 min trek north on interstate 25 and got to Coors field and parked. We walked up to the stadium and as soon as he walked through the gate and saw the field from the concourse, his eyes grew big and wide, and his smile was the size of the grinches in how the grinch stole Christmas. He instantly began running around and hopping and was excited about being there. Looking back, I know he didn’t know what was going on just that the people on the field taking batting practice were the headliners of whatever this was. We sat in our seats and slowly meet the patrons around us who, unbeknownst to me were all wearing Mets jerseys and I instantly began to think “well this isn’t going to be fun , I know they are going to start some stuff” as I was wearing my Rockies gear and my son had a Rockies kids hat and a mini t-shirt . As we sat there longer everyone wanted him to get a foul ball and I slowly realized they knew this was his first game which I confirmed to a few of the surrounding Mets fans. As the innings moved forward more and more people engaged with him as he was giggling and excited about maybe a ball coming his way. Unfortunately, this never happened. However, what did happen was my son became drawn to this game he had never heard of in his short 2 and a half years on earth. He ended up seeing a big home run but unfortunately did not see the Rockies win. He was also given a Rockies team set which he unfortunately lost due to moving around so much but to be given cards for free by strangers, who like another team, this showed me a side of baseball I had totally forgotten about due to the issues mentioned before, pure love of the game. After that day and seeing the pure love and enjoyment he had shown, I realized that the same group of feelings was still inside me but had been buried. This moment pulled out my love and passion for collecting cards as it made me feel like he showed me that day a person could feel. Collecting should make you feel like a naive little kid and your love should be pure in the hobby and drawn by your emotions not by monetary gain or anything outside pure enjoyment.
Matthew Ransom
@MDRANSOM1
( RansomCards)