Memorable, Inspirational View-Master
A childhood toy influenced a lifetime
One childhood toy had a grand influence on young Gail Bobrowitz, an inspiration that has lasted throughout her life. In From Our Readers, Bobrowitz shares her experience the simple, mind-expanding View-Master.
I don’t remember the exact year my parents gave me a View-Master. I know it was before I was eight, and probably older than six. I guess that leaves 7! Anyway, I was fascinated. After reviewing the reels in the viewfinder, I had my parents order another new set, and then another and another! I know that when I was 8, we moved from Brooklyn to Queens, and somehow the View-Master, along with all the reels, never made it to the new house. I mourned that toy. I didn’t have it that long, and I never got another.
The View-Master created a permanent memory. I was so fascinated with different places and spectacular views of countries far away. I was mesmerized by the photos of people in their native dress and by how differently they lived from what was normal to me. I vowed to one day travel to all these places and mingle with the people who live there.
Well, it never quite came to that. After all, at 8 years old, I had no concept of the time and cost involved in such an endeavor. I switched from the View-Master and read books, all kinds of books. The library had a much larger selection than all the reels available for purchase.
Travel adventures were my favorite. I absolutely devoured the books “The Good Earth” and “Exodus.” The world was filled with stories and myths about fantastic things that had happened and those that might have happened, but had never been corroborated or found. Some of these stories have featured people seeking treasure, the elusive El Dorado, or immortality, like the Fountain of Youth. There were so many legends. How were they created?
I vowed that one day I would visit some of these alleged spots, or perhaps even discover something as yet undiscovered. What I find may not be what I seek, but that’s part of the thrill.
Here I am, 79 years old. I traveled a little in my life, but I could never see all the places I dreamed of. There is a program on the Discovery Channel that has given me some satisfaction, since I was never going to see everything. It’s called Mysteries of the Abandoned, and on two occasions, I recognized the places they featured.
About a month before my birthday, I started thinking about my View-Master: a simple toy that gave me hours of enjoyment, the 3-D images, and the people and places I could never imagine. I mentioned it to my friends, and I was amazed to learn they had enjoyed the View-Master as children, too.
This birthday, I opened a present from my daughter. It was a View-Master, almost exactly as I remembered it. She also searched and found some “vintage” reels.
You can’t imagine the pleasure I got looking at this low-tech toy, just the viewer, the reel, and a little tab to advance the pictures. I’m fairly certain today’s kids wouldn’t love something so basic, but to me, this toy set me on a path throughout my life: researching curiosities, seeking beauty in nature, and quenching my curiosity about what lies beyond my little world.
Read more like Gail Bobrowitz’s reflections on a childhood toy and other contributions from Boomer readers in our
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