By Vicki de Klerk and Ed Feil
I want to share one early memory from when we lived in New York. I was 5 or so, and my sister Beth must have been 3. Mom would hang a blanket in the living room, like a theatrical curtain. We had the original cast album of a new Broadway musical, The Music Man. We would act out each song on the album in front of the curtain with other kids in our apartment building. Dancing ‘The Twist’ to Chubby Checkers was another favorite memory of mine. This was the sort of creative play Mom did so well.
Some of my most cherished childhood memories involve my mother’s puppet shows. At home, we would play with puppets as she entertained us with imaginative, improvised stories. When I was in preschool and early elementary school, she would bring a portable puppet theater and an array of colorful hand puppets to give a show for special events. I realize now that at a young age, I watched her use empathy and creativity to fully embody her characters, always engaging wholeheartedly with her audience. I was always so proud of her performances—they were truly magical moments.
With ‘validation eyes’, we see that she gave us kids unconditional love, freedom to explore and be creative, and a deep love of the arts of all kinds.
Naomi directing a back-yard production of ‘The Wizzard of Id’ with children of the neighborhood in the mid-1960s. She is pregnant with her son, Ken.