Train Sets by Lionel

 Nothing says the holidays to me more than a train set. I spent hours under the Christmas tree with my grandfather and his collection. Every year they added new accessories, like houses and people, and my siblings and I would exercise our creativity as we made up all sorts of adventures. The little passengers took epic journeys, even though they were really just traveling an endless loop.

The only thing more exciting than the track coming out for the holidays was the time we got to visit the neighbor that had a permanent installation in his basement. His train didn’t just go in a simple loop; it went around hills and bends and over bridges. This guy had sections that were town and sections that were grass and tress. It was such a treat for our imaginations.

We learned at a young age that these weren’t for kids to play with alone, that they were breakable and if we did something wrong the line could stop running! We were never allowed to operate them without an adult watching us, and so we grew up knowing that these were a cross-generational family item. This thought is reiterated today just as strongly as it was back then, when even one of the main characters on the hit TV series The Big Bang Theory, loves them. Sheldon Cooper collects them, and even has his own conductor hat! Train sets will continue to be a  classic and awe-inspiring gift.