我的收藏品

Do you collect anything? I do. Some of my col- lections are big， some small， but I like to collect them all the same.

I have a rock collection that grows every time I find a rock on the ground. It seems that I can always manage to find something special about the rock， even if it is just a plain old pebble (卵石)， nothing special about it. I have some rocks that have the tiniest shimmer¹ of a crystal (水晶) in them， and others that are weird² shapes. I even found one once that looked like the letter L! Many of them bring back memories--exploring the wide open outdoors， playing hop- scotch (“跳房子”游戲) at school， even planting flowers! I try to remember where and when I found each one.

Another collection of mine is an unsharpened pencil collection. I have a whole box full of them， and no two are the same! I try not to use any of them unless I have doubles， which is very rare. My sister also collects them， and that is why I started in the first place. One of my pencils has a fluffy (絨毛狀的) top， and I have others that are bendy (易彎曲的)， twice as long as regular ones， and really fat ones. It's fun to look through all of them to see which one is my favorite. Some of them are from China!

My last and most varied collection is my collection of bouncy (有彈性的) balls. I have over thirty of them in different shapes， sizes， and colors. Some glow in the dark， some light up， and 'others bounce really high! It's fun to collect them because you never know if you will find another one of that exact kind. I have some that are the same size but different colors， and others that are the same color but different sizes.

I have friends who collect all sorts of things， from dog and owl figurines (小雕像) from all over the world to toy Volkswagen Bugs. Having a collection is not only fun， it gives you a chance to express your inner self. If you collect bracelets(手鐲，臂鐲)， find ones that represent yourself. For example， if you like music， get one with music notes on it. It's a fun way to convey³ what you like， and， at the same time， share your thoughts and dreams.

I think it is important to have a collection because you can see it grow and grow， thanks to your hard work. Also， if you have to decide between different things， if you save one， that's the one you should probably pick. My friends all know about my fondness for bouncy balls， so sometimes as presents they give me bouncy balls. Some give me pencils， others different rocks they find every day. Having a collection is fun， especially because you don't have to take care of it， unless it is a collection of living things. If you ever come over(從遠方過來)， I'll share my treasures with you， along with the stories that belong to them.

If you don't collect anything， I would recommend starting! You'll find that your friends will join you. Maybe you can even start a club!

The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step(千里之行，始于足下). --Lao Zi(老子)

If you start with one piece of your collections， soon it could grow to be millions! Just keep trying!

注釋：

1．shimmer n. 微光

2．weird adj．[口]奇特的，奇怪的

3．convey vt．表達，表示