For the past several months, we have written about many categories of collectibles and items that make up collections.

In most cases, collections are made up of reminders of the past. Avid collectors often research the origins, makers and designers, thus adding to the overall interest.

Recently, the passing of comic genius Jerry Lewis prompted me to think of a collection that costs nothing and takes up no space. That collectible is memories that we experience throughout our lives.

A handy notebook to jot down great happenings is one way to jog one’s memory. How about your first date, first trip overseas, first job interview, best vacation? Remember your first day when you transferred to a new school?

One memory can spawn another, and pretty soon you have a collection of great moments.

Back to Jerry Lewis and my two memorable moments with him. I feel all of us have encountered a celebrity or two, with sometimes good and sometimes poor results.

Over these many years, I have had the opportunity to meet and greet several notables. I found when it’s one on one, you really get a different perspective.

Jerry Lewis was a genius and shared many ideas with me when I was the promotion director for Nabisco.

He performed for Oreo’s 75th birthday at New York’s Waldorf Astoria, and in his own opinion, he flopped. He refused to accept his sizable fee.

When told that Nabisco always upholds an agreement, he said “Then make the check out to the Muscular Dystrophy Association.” That was a memorable moment for this writer.

In another meeting, Lewis desperately wanted to be the spokesperson for Oreo, much the same as Andy Griffith was for Ritz crackers.

He failed in testing with the target audience, and we could not employ him. Being the pro he was, he thanked us for the opportunity to audition. Another moment for my notebook.

As we get older, many of our great moments are lost during our hustle-bustle days. If you sit down with a simple notebook and list your experiences, you’ll soon be impressed with your own past events.

Share this idea with a friend and soon you’ll develop a collection of meaningful conversations you can share, beyond the typical “Isn’t this weather horrible?”

Thank you, Jerry Lewis, for your contributions to our family’s notebook.

Jerry Glenn is co-owner of Reminisce in Bluffton, where sports collectibles are bought and sold.