The Woman Has a Few Nativity Sets on Display

Collecting is about passion.

Last week I spent a few days in Denver, where some of my favorite people live. I stayed with my friend Susan, who has collected several hundred nativity sets. Although she displays some of them throughout the year, during Advent they take over her home.

Susan’s Christmas tree holds only nativity ornaments.

Her nativities come from all over the world and are made of many different materials.

They come in various sizes. Some of her smallest ones are displayed in a glass case surrounded by mirrors, and I didn’t try to photograph them. She keeps a magnifying glass handy so that her visitors can examine them. While I was there, she dropped a seed that contained a nativity, and when I left two days later, we still hadn’t found it!

This armadillo was one of my favorites.

But my very favorite of Susan’s nativity sets is the one she sent home with me. It now sits on my mantle.

You probably remember that I have a rather extensive bear collection. I know, it doesn’t make sense. What can I say? Collecting is about passion.