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Our Hobby Has Lost a Member
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Here's the story of a boy I know. I first came to know him due to both of us going to the same church. It first came to my attention that he loved trains when he was about five years old. He had a Life-Like set that was in pieces and I took it home and repaired it for him. I got to know him better and as he got older, he accumulated more HO trains. He was pretty rough with his toys and many times I had to do repairs on his trains. He really did love trains, though, and it wasn't just a passive interest and I gave him quite a few items that I had and didn't need. He had always wanted a crane and it was the biggest thrill of his life when I gave him a Tyco Santa Fe crane. His dad frequents auctions and garage sales and has found a lot of trains through them. By now this boy has amassed a collection of more than 10 engines and close to 50 cars. <br /> <br />Now, his parents are divorced and his dad lives in the city. The mother has custody and the father gets him on weekends and holidays. The father also has a restraining order preventing him from going to the boy's mother's home. About four of years ago, I realized that he ought to have a layout to run his trains on, instead of just setting up and taking down his trains on the floor. The trains would also probably not have to be repired as much, seeing as how they would be used in a better way. Given the situation with his dad, I built a layout for him. It was nothing fancy, just some track and accessories nailed to a 4x8. <br /> <br />Yesterday, I ran into the boy and his mother. The boy is going to be entering Grade 7 this fall. He asked me if I was still collecting trains and then told me that he's selling his trains. It seems that he has lost interest in them, certainly a huge contrast to the enthusiasm he had before. I headed over to his house to find the majority of his trains arranged haphazardly in a large box, almost as if they had just been thrown in there. A lot of trucks and wheels had come off and were in a container. Another large box contained everything from the layout, which was now dismantled-not dismantled in a methodical way, but literally ripped up, as all the track had broken ties where it had been nailed on the board. I took the whole lot home, went through it all and made my final repairs to the boy's trains. I kept two engines and a few cars that I wanted, as well as what buildings there were and gave him a fair price for them. The rest I all brought back to him. I'm not sure how he intends to sell them or if he ever will succeed in doing so. <br /> <br />Now, I had said that the majority or his trains were in this box. He is saving some trains (some better items, such as a Via Rail set and a steam engine) and this includes that crane I gave him years ago. This, however, I think is more because of his mother, who smartly told me that she would refuse to allow him to sell all of his trains. It's sad to see that he is no longer interested in trains, but I'm still very proud to have supported him in his model railroading evdeavours. I feel that I have done something to promote the growth of the hobby. It's a relief to see that he will still have some trains. Perhaps in later years, when he's an adult or has kids of his own, he will rediscover his trains and start up in the hobby again. I hope that will be the case.
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