To say that Star Wars had a big impact on seven-year-old me in 1977 would be like telling someone standing in the path of a tidal wave that they might experience slight moisture. I didn’t just love the movie - I dove headfirst into collecting the figures, playsets, and just about any memorabilia I could get my hands on.

Most of what I had back then was either lost over time or so “well-loved” that it eventually fell apart, but at one point I had a pretty impressive collection. The only things I managed to hold onto in decent shape were some of the trading cards from the very first Topps set, so over the past decade or so I’ve picked up the occasional Star Wars item here and there - just enough to reconnect with that feeling.

That’s the magic of memorabilia. Sometimes you’re not collecting cardboard or plastic - you’re collecting the moment you first heard, "A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…"