Nostalgia

Lately, I’ve been feeling quite nostalgic and often find myself drifting back to times gone by whenever I hear a song or stumble upon a television show that was from a different era.

The majority of my life I have been a part of this hobby in some way or another. And unlike many folks out there who collected cards as a kid then moved on from the hobby — I never really stopped.

From that first pack of 1979 Topps baseball to the box of 2024-25 Skybox Metal Hockey I opened this morning — trading cards have marked the passage of time in my life.

I literally equate eras in life for me with cards.

I graduated from high school in a time when Upper Deck changed the game with their 1989 baseball set, particularly that Griffey rookie, and Hoops basketball introduced us to David Robinson.

I was in college when that beautiful Derek Jeter SP foil rookie was the chase. I got married and I think of Ichiro rookies, and it seems every event, every era, in my life is somehow connected to a memory of a sports card.

The fact that my brother and I were doing shows all over the region might have something to do with, admittedly, but I really think it’s more than that.

For those of us who truly love the hobby, these little pieces of cardboard are much more than that — they’re markers of time.

And now that I’m coming to terms with the fact that much time has already passed in my life, I’ve come to discover my love for baseball, hockey, football and basketball cards (along with TCGs) have taken on a much different meaning to me, something deeper than just the buy-sell-trade aspect of the hobby.

Nowadays, I’m gravitating toward cards that evoke an emotion, a feeling, a memory within me.

I remember being a kid and working so hard to trade for a 1983 Topps Tony Gwynn rookie card from my friend Dave, and never seeming to come up with the right offer for him.

I now have a dozen ‘83 Topps Gwynn rookies and each one means something to me.

I recently picked up a Steve Yzerman rookie, and have more Lanny McDonald cards than any one person should.

Point is, both these cards remind me of my childhood, the good times when I was a kid. They remind me of the innocent and pure core that is the hobby we love, and they aren’t the most valuable cards out there either, at least in dollars-and cents.

Honestly though, I wouldn’t sell my McDonald collection for anything, nor would I part with anything that tugs at my heart or stirs up something more inside.

As all of you grow older, I hope you all get to experience this as well.