Article: Collections reflect interests _ and humanity.(Knight Ridder Newspapers)

KANSAS CITY, Mo. _ The urge to collect takes hold early. A battered cigar box is often the repository of our first treasures: a feather, a cat's-eye marble, a plastic magnifying glass.

That nursery-school hodgepodge eventually gives way to conventional collections stored in sleek albums: Mercury dimes, Caribbean stamps, baseball cards.

As adults the things we collect not only reflect our changing interests, but also they shape the way we live.

In extreme cases, homes become mere stage sets for prized possessions. Think of Victorian living rooms with a teddy bear on every chair, or a bachelor apartment with stacks of LPs and comic books rising ...

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