Rekindling My Old Love For Philately
Rekindling My Old Love For Philately
When we recently went to my hometown for a vacation, I saw my old stamp collection tucked away among my things in my room and I suddenly remembered my love for philately. I kept my stamps in an old album that was given to me by a former high school teacher, who also gave me more stamps to add to my collection.
Rekindling My Old Love For Philately
Falling in love with philately
I started collecting stamps when I was in third grade after seeing it from one of my favorite cartoon shows. I picked up the hobby easily because of my natural love for seeing new places, even in images.
I had a steady supply of stamps because I had an aunt who was working abroad at that time. I remember carefully placing the letter envelopes over a hot surface to loosen the adhesive of the stamps. Once I’ve successfully separated the stamps from the paper, I’d then put them in a photo album and marvel at them from time to time. My father later on explained to me that the hobby of collecting stamps is called philately.
Later on, I realized that philately can also be a good way to learn new things. After all, the stamps feature photos of heads of state as well as national symbols like official animals and plants. And then there’s also the currency of the country where the stamps originated.
In a way, philately gave me my first taste of how it was to travel. I saw new places and gained new knowledge from the stamps that I collected. Those were the days way before the advent of the Internet and even more so social media.
I continued with my love for philately throughout high school. That was when a teacher gave me a stamp album that contained a great deal of old stamps.
During college, I met some classmates who were also into philately. From them, I found out that there were stamps that were sold in sets at the National Bookstore. I remember buying a set or two but I wasn’t able to sustain it due to student budget constraints.
Anyway, I got busy soon after college and completely forgot about philately, save for the few moments that I’d stumble upon my old stamp album. When I saw my stamp album a few months ago, I rekindled my joy for philately and thought that I’d want my kids to also take interest in collecting stamps.
Philately in the Philippines
Technically speaking, philately is the study of postage stamps and postal history, in addition to the actual hobby of collecting stamps. Philately can also involve the act of studying stamps that are located in a research facility or a museum.
Photo by Jievani from Pexels
In this age of online interaction and social media, not many Filipinos may be familiar about what philately is except, of course, for enthusiasts themselves. In fact, philately in the Philippines is very active.
Did you know that November has been designated as the National Stamp Collecting Month or NSCM since 1994 through Presidential Proclamation No. 494?
The proclamation was issued by then President Fidel V. Ramos, also an avid stamp collector. However, the National Philatelic Week has been celebrated from as far back as the year 1952.
Going back to the NSCM, the objective of which is to promote Philippine history, culture, and traditions through philately among Filipinos and especially among the youth.
Where to buy postage stamps
If you are thinking of starting out on philately or reviving your hobby of collecting stamps, you can still do so in this age of emails and online meetings. Thanks to Lazada and Shopee, you can conveniently buy postage stamps online and have these delivered to your home.
Epilogue
Philately is an old hobby that I’ve enjoyed throughout the years. I’ve recently relived the joy of collecting stamps when I saw my stamp album when we went home for a vacation in the province.
I think a lot of people will still find happiness in collecting stamps especially during this pandemic when traveling to other places is nearly impossible. Stamps allow you to go to different places, take you back through history, and provide knowledge about culture and traditions.
While it all seems that getting your hands on stamps is almost obsolete because of the popularity of electronic communication channels, there are still online shops that sell stamps.
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