
In response to requests to share your stories, here is the website where you can do that. Each week stories from each prompt will be posted. You are encouraged to share your writings, your memories, either with your name, first name only, or anonymously. When submitting, please indicate your preference. Enjoy, reflect and remember!
WEEK 1: PROMPT # 1
What did you read under the covers with a flashlight? “Good night” I told my parents and then snuck away under the blankets to keep reading. Remember “murder” mysteries or sporting events on the radios?
Stories Submitted
After Lights Out - Claire
After Lights Out - Ed
After Lights out I used to do different things. I shared a room with my brother and we always tried to catch up and whisper about what we had done during that day, as we were three years apart in age. Most of the time I would take a flashlight and read under the covers.
I had a reading problem early on until a teacher named Mrs. Riley refused to give up on me in the 3rd grade. She even visited my house and got me started reading Classic Comics. They were comics with true stories from American history that were drawn in cells, just like comics (illustrated). The dam seemed to burst and I couldn’t stop reading. My favorites became Superman, Super Boy and Batman. I would read unless my Dad caught me and told me to go to sleep.
I also was crazy about the Brooklyn Dodgers. I would take my little transistor radio and listen to the games under the covers. I grew up in Queens and sometimes would take the shuttle from Flushing to Ebbets Field to watch the Dodgers play. That just about covers my late night activities in those days.
WEEK 1: PROMPT # 2
There were the things we couldn’t touch. Old photos of people we didn’t know or couldn’t recognize, like your parents’ parents, your own grandparents, when they were young. Perhaps there were trinkets, keepsakes, or perfumes. Close your eyes and remember what you saw.
Stories Submitted
In Grade School
The Big Sneak - Ellyn
I was the original obedient child. I was a very “good girl” and almost always did what was
expected of me. It was very important for me to please my parents. But when I was in 10 th
grade, I dabbled in living dangerously. One time, after Mrs. Kane dropped off our carpool at
Hebrew High School in Cedarhurst, Long Island, Ben Kane and I decided to cut class. Ben was cute, and the idea of being on our own for two hours seemed deliciously risky. So when his Mom’s car pulled away, we walked slowly toward the temple, and then headed off to the town. Cedarhurst was a busy town with lots of boutiques, ladies’ accessory stores, shoe stores, bakeries and coffee shops. Honestly, I don’t think we even went into a store. We just wandered around, walking up and down the streets. About an hour into our escape from Hebrew school, I heard a car horn honk. “ Hi Ellyn, what are you doing here?” It was my mother’s good friend Ruth Shapiro, driving right next to us in her 1964 Cadillac. Busted, I thought. I couldn’t come up with a single good explanation for why I was wandering the streets with Ben. I think I just lamely replied, “Oh hi, Mrs. Shapiro,” and walked on. I prayed she would not tell my parents. We kept on walking, a little bored, if truth be told. We were happy enough to see Mrs. Kane when she came to pick us up at 6 o’clock.
In Grade School - Rabbi Paula
In grade school, I walked back and forth four times every day to school, tagging
after my big brother Eric. We came home every day for lunch and walked back for
the afternoon to our cozy neighborhood Chapman School. Eric was loosely
responsible for my safe delivery in both directions, but I am sure he tried to ditch
me along the way as I was the only girl in a neighborhood of boys. It’s amazing to
consider how much times have changed when I recall those walks to school, three
quarters of a mile along Brighton Avenue (the busiest street on my side of town)
from the time I was five. No parents walked with us and no one worried at all. To
think of parents sending a five-year-old out the backdoor to walk to school is
beyond imagination today!
Corner Store. I am sure it had a name, but we all called it just what it was. We
would often stop on the way home to spend our nickels on candy and I recall
having a mad crush on a crossing guard named Chris. I spent my money on Necco
Wafers or Mars bars for him until my brother told my parents about the
purchases.
grade teacher, Mrs. Merrill, met Eric and me in the large front hall of the school.
She stood taller than the doorways in my memory and asked in a very stern voice
where we had been. I do not remember if Eric and I simply dawdled or if there
was a reason for our late arrival, but as a rule-abiding, adult-pleasing child, I know
that I was devastated by her concern. When I remember that morning, I can feel
the fear and tightness in my little chest. How I wish that I could ask Eric if he
remembers. He always had a much better memory for detail than me. I’ll have to
make it up for both of us.
IN GRADE SCHOOL / “MOM, THE TEACHER HATES ME” - Joe
Welcome to Public School 36 in St Albans, Queens County, New York City and to the 7 th grade history honors class. The neighborhood was white and lower middle class, which was being upgraded after World War II. The classroom was the incubator. Meet some of the characters:
his dad was a dentist.
remembers him).
FDR is President of the United States of America and you’re just another elementary school teacher?”
and to all immigrants who came to America to become citizens. She apologized for me. She would punish me and help me to become a respectful student. I mumbled I would. Miss Carlin and Mrs. Liptrop thanked mom and we left the
office.
1- Yossel is not being thrown out of school.
2-You are not having your citizenship revoked or being deported.
3-I fixed everything
4-Let’s have lunch”
WEEK 2: PROMPT # 3
A first car is a milestone. Maybe you got it to commute to school or to get a new job. Perhaps your dad got a new car and you were allowed to drive his old Junker. What freedoms did a car afford you? What did it feel like the first time you were behind its wheel?
Stories Submitted
My First Car - Andrea
My first car was a Chevy Vega, a graduation gift from college. Because the engine was in the back it was rated as the most dangerous car on the road. In ten years it never gave me any problems, but driving lessons did.
My First Car - Claire
Oh my! My first outing alone after getting my driver’s license and the car
seems to have a mind of its own. I had a doctor’s appointment just a few
short blocks from the apartment where I lived with my family that consisted
of my parents and my younger brother. My father had taught me to drive
and I passed the test on the first try. Why did the car seem to be moving on
its own power?
front of our apartment building and breathed a sigh of relief. While I was
pulling myself together, a neighbor from the building was walking by and
stopped to say hello to me. Of course I took the opportunity to tell her my
problem. She listened attentively and then quietly pointed toward the gas
pedal and said, “Your car mat is on the gas pedal.”
My First Car-Beginning a New Chapter in Life - Joe
modern transportation was going to help us move along in life.
NYU Dental School and she a sophomore at Brooklyn College. We married in 1958.
We lived in a small studio apartment (I never saw a large one) at the Ocean
Parkway exit of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway. Shelly taught first grade at the
East Meadow Elementary School. Shelly supported us both and luckily we didn’t
eat much. Her generous parents gave us their old (aptly named) Oldsmobile which
had 140,000 miles and a faulty electrical system.
base in Orlando, Florida. We said good-bye to our Oldsmobile and welcomed our
new Plymouth. So, September 1959 was a true transition for us.
playing in my head as I drove to work. A large impressive sign “McCoy Air Force
Base-Strategic Air Command-321 st Bomb Wing” marked the entrance. The new
Plymouth and the young Captain entered. The Plymouth’s front bumper had a large
sticker that read “Captain, 813 Medical Group, McCoy AFB, USAF, SAC”. The old
car had a bumper sticker also, “Original Pete’s Pizza.”
“Good morning, doctor. Have a good day, sir.” I returned his salute, wished him a
good day, and addressed him by rank and name (which I read on his uniform).
What a nice way to start a day and begin my military career, a wonderful two
years.
York Police Department for parking violations.
WEEK 2: PROMPT # 4
There was a particular teacher who you were positive hated you. Remember how big the 5th graders were when you were a first grader? Your favorite subjects and the ones you liked the least, the girls or boys you loved to tease.
Stories Submitted
In Grade School
The Big Sneak - Ellyn
I was the original obedient child. I was a very “good girl” and almost always did what was
expected of me. It was very important for me to please my parents. But when I was in 10 th
grade, I dabbled in living dangerously. One time, after Mrs. Kane dropped off our carpool at
Hebrew High School in Cedarhurst, Long Island, Ben Kane and I decided to cut class. Ben was cute, and the idea of being on our own for two hours seemed deliciously risky. So when his Mom’s car pulled away, we walked slowly toward the temple, and then headed off to the town. Cedarhurst was a busy town with lots of boutiques, ladies’ accessory stores, shoe stores, bakeries and coffee shops. Honestly, I don’t think we even went into a store. We just wandered around, walking up and down the streets. About an hour into our escape from Hebrew school, I heard a car horn honk. “ Hi Ellyn, what are you doing here?” It was my mother’s good friend Ruth Shapiro, driving right next to us in her 1964 Cadillac. Busted, I thought. I couldn’t come up with a single good explanation for why I was wandering the streets with Ben. I think I just lamely replied, “Oh hi, Mrs. Shapiro,” and walked on. I prayed she would not tell my parents. We kept on walking, a little bored, if truth be told. We were happy enough to see Mrs. Kane when she came to pick us up at 6 o’clock.
In Grade School - Rabbi Paula
In grade school, I walked back and forth four times every day to school, tagging
after my big brother Eric. We came home every day for lunch and walked back for
the afternoon to our cozy neighborhood Chapman School. Eric was loosely
responsible for my safe delivery in both directions, but I am sure he tried to ditch
me along the way as I was the only girl in a neighborhood of boys. It’s amazing to
consider how much times have changed when I recall those walks to school, three
quarters of a mile along Brighton Avenue (the busiest street on my side of town)
from the time I was five. No parents walked with us and no one worried at all. To
think of parents sending a five-year-old out the backdoor to walk to school is
beyond imagination today!
Corner Store. I am sure it had a name, but we all called it just what it was. We
would often stop on the way home to spend our nickels on candy and I recall
having a mad crush on a crossing guard named Chris. I spent my money on Necco
Wafers or Mars bars for him until my brother told my parents about the
purchases.
grade teacher, Mrs. Merrill, met Eric and me in the large front hall of the school.
She stood taller than the doorways in my memory and asked in a very stern voice
where we had been. I do not remember if Eric and I simply dawdled or if there
was a reason for our late arrival, but as a rule-abiding, adult-pleasing child, I know
that I was devastated by her concern. When I remember that morning, I can feel
the fear and tightness in my little chest. How I wish that I could ask Eric if he
remembers. He always had a much better memory for detail than me. I’ll have to
make it up for both of us.
IN GRADE SCHOOL / “MOM, THE TEACHER HATES ME” - Joe
Welcome to Public School 36 in St Albans, Queens County, New York City and to the 7 th grade history honors class. The neighborhood was white and lower middle class, which was being upgraded after World War II. The classroom was the incubator. Meet some of the characters:
his dad was a dentist.
remembers him).
FDR is President of the United States of America and you’re just another elementary school teacher?”
and to all immigrants who came to America to become citizens. She apologized for me. She would punish me and help me to become a respectful student. I mumbled I would. Miss Carlin and Mrs. Liptrop thanked mom and we left the
office.
1- Yossel is not being thrown out of school.
2-You are not having your citizenship revoked or being deported.
3-I fixed everything
4-Let’s have lunch”
WEEK 3: PROMPT # 5
What games did you play growing up? Were they “indoors” or “outdoors” games? Did you shoot marbles, play kick the can in the middle of the street, draw hopscotch on the sidewalk, jump rope?
Stories Submitted
My Favorite Games Growing Up - Claire
Win or lose. It didn’t really matter. I’ve always enjoyed playing games.
As a little girl, I would spend a lot of weekends at my maternal
grandparents’ house. We did fun things together but the thing I liked best
was playing games with them. They were long past the time when their own
kids lived at home, so mostly we played cards which were readily available.
We started off with the easy card games like “steal the old man’s bundle“
and “war.” As I got older, the games got harder; rummy, gin rummy and
the like. I’m sure it’s not the card games I was enamored with, but the
enjoyment of playing with my grandparents and having their undivided
attention.
together with my 4 grandsons, the games have gone up a notch in difficulty.
The 2 youngest grandsons, 9 and 14, have learned to play mah jongg and
play a competitive game. The older ones, 16 and 19, play, and have taught
me, Catan, which I found very difficult. If they can tolerate playing it with
me again, I’ll try to do better. As it was when playing with my grandparents,
parents, children, grandchildren or friends, it’s being with the people that’s
the fun.
WEEK 3: PROMPT # 6
There are certain smells and tastes that can transport you right back to a specific moment in time. Perhaps you are sitting in Grandma’s kitchen or perhaps it was your own Mother or a favorite Aunt? Did you help to cook a holiday meal? Maybe Grandma let you lick the bowl from the chocolate cookies? Did you have a favorite food that only Grandma could make just right? Feel free to change the prompt to fit your memory.
Stories Submitted
My Favorite Games Growing Up - Claire
Win or lose. It didn’t really matter. I’ve always enjoyed playing games.
As a little girl, I would spend a lot of weekends at my maternal
grandparents’ house. We did fun things together but the thing I liked best
was playing games with them. They were long past the time when their own
kids lived at home, so mostly we played cards which were readily available.
We started off with the easy card games like “steal the old man’s bundle“
and “war.” As I got older, the games got harder; rummy, gin rummy and
the like. I’m sure it’s not the card games I was enamored with, but the
enjoyment of playing with my grandparents and having their undivided
attention.
together with my 4 grandsons, the games have gone up a notch in difficulty.
The 2 youngest grandsons, 9 and 14, have learned to play mah jongg and
play a competitive game. The older ones, 16 and 19, play, and have taught
me, Catan, which I found very difficult. If they can tolerate playing it with
me again, I’ll try to do better. As it was when playing with my grandparents,
parents, children, grandchildren or friends, it’s being with the people that’s
the fun.
WEEK 4: PROMPT # 7
In some families, birthdays are national holidays. In others they pass without fanfare. Was there a special tradition or a favorite cake? Or maybe a special birthday party? Did you have to share with your siblings, or did you get to be the star on your birthday?
Stories Submitted
My First Car - Andrea
My first car was a Chevy Vega, a graduation gift from college. Because the engine was in the back it was rated as the most dangerous car on the road. In ten years it never gave me any problems, but driving lessons did.
My First Car - Claire
Oh my! My first outing alone after getting my driver’s license and the car
seems to have a mind of its own. I had a doctor’s appointment just a few
short blocks from the apartment where I lived with my family that consisted
of my parents and my younger brother. My father had taught me to drive
and I passed the test on the first try. Why did the car seem to be moving on
its own power?
front of our apartment building and breathed a sigh of relief. While I was
pulling myself together, a neighbor from the building was walking by and
stopped to say hello to me. Of course I took the opportunity to tell her my
problem. She listened attentively and then quietly pointed toward the gas
pedal and said, “Your car mat is on the gas pedal.”
My First Car-Beginning a New Chapter in Life - Joe
modern transportation was going to help us move along in life.
NYU Dental School and she a sophomore at Brooklyn College. We married in 1958.
We lived in a small studio apartment (I never saw a large one) at the Ocean
Parkway exit of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway. Shelly taught first grade at the
East Meadow Elementary School. Shelly supported us both and luckily we didn’t
eat much. Her generous parents gave us their old (aptly named) Oldsmobile which
had 140,000 miles and a faulty electrical system.
base in Orlando, Florida. We said good-bye to our Oldsmobile and welcomed our
new Plymouth. So, September 1959 was a true transition for us.
playing in my head as I drove to work. A large impressive sign “McCoy Air Force
Base-Strategic Air Command-321 st Bomb Wing” marked the entrance. The new
Plymouth and the young Captain entered. The Plymouth’s front bumper had a large
sticker that read “Captain, 813 Medical Group, McCoy AFB, USAF, SAC”. The old
car had a bumper sticker also, “Original Pete’s Pizza.”
“Good morning, doctor. Have a good day, sir.” I returned his salute, wished him a
good day, and addressed him by rank and name (which I read on his uniform).
What a nice way to start a day and begin my military career, a wonderful two
years.
York Police Department for parking violations.
WEEK 4: PROMPT # 8
In some families, birthdays are national holidays. In others they pass without fanfare. Was there a special tradition or a favorite cake? Or maybe a special birthday party? Did you have to share with your siblings, or did you get to be the star on your birthday?
Stories Submitted
My Favorite Games Growing Up - Claire
Win or lose. It didn’t really matter. I’ve always enjoyed playing games.
As a little girl, I would spend a lot of weekends at my maternal
grandparents’ house. We did fun things together but the thing I liked best
was playing games with them. They were long past the time when their own
kids lived at home, so mostly we played cards which were readily available.
We started off with the easy card games like “steal the old man’s bundle“
and “war.” As I got older, the games got harder; rummy, gin rummy and
the like. I’m sure it’s not the card games I was enamored with, but the
enjoyment of playing with my grandparents and having their undivided
attention.
together with my 4 grandsons, the games have gone up a notch in difficulty.
The 2 youngest grandsons, 9 and 14, have learned to play mah jongg and
play a competitive game. The older ones, 16 and 19, play, and have taught
me, Catan, which I found very difficult. If they can tolerate playing it with
me again, I’ll try to do better. As it was when playing with my grandparents,
parents, children, grandchildren or friends, it’s being with the people that’s
the fun.
WEEK 5: PROMPT # 10
When I picked up my high school yearbook, I was transported back to 1958, holding the book under my arm as I wandered the halls of William Penn High School in Harrisburg, PA looking for friends to sign it. What was high school like for you? Do you recognize the people in your yearbook? Do you recognize yourself? What do the things people wrote remind you of?
Stories Submitted
My Favorite Games Growing Up - Claire
Win or lose. It didn’t really matter. I’ve always enjoyed playing games.
As a little girl, I would spend a lot of weekends at my maternal
grandparents’ house. We did fun things together but the thing I liked best
was playing games with them. They were long past the time when their own
kids lived at home, so mostly we played cards which were readily available.
We started off with the easy card games like “steal the old man’s bundle“
and “war.” As I got older, the games got harder; rummy, gin rummy and
the like. I’m sure it’s not the card games I was enamored with, but the
enjoyment of playing with my grandparents and having their undivided
attention.
together with my 4 grandsons, the games have gone up a notch in difficulty.
The 2 youngest grandsons, 9 and 14, have learned to play mah jongg and
play a competitive game. The older ones, 16 and 19, play, and have taught
me, Catan, which I found very difficult. If they can tolerate playing it with
me again, I’ll try to do better. As it was when playing with my grandparents,
parents, children, grandchildren or friends, it’s being with the people that’s
the fun.
WEEK 6: PROMPT # 11
Some say a sibling is a friend for life. What about you? Were you co-conspirators or sworn enemies? What about the time you covered for each other or a secret you shared? You can choose at what age, which sibling, just one or all of them. Feel free to replace sibling with cousin or another family member or a best friend.
Stories Submitted
In Grade School
The Big Sneak - Ellyn
I was the original obedient child. I was a very “good girl” and almost always did what was
expected of me. It was very important for me to please my parents. But when I was in 10 th
grade, I dabbled in living dangerously. One time, after Mrs. Kane dropped off our carpool at
Hebrew High School in Cedarhurst, Long Island, Ben Kane and I decided to cut class. Ben was cute, and the idea of being on our own for two hours seemed deliciously risky. So when his Mom’s car pulled away, we walked slowly toward the temple, and then headed off to the town. Cedarhurst was a busy town with lots of boutiques, ladies’ accessory stores, shoe stores, bakeries and coffee shops. Honestly, I don’t think we even went into a store. We just wandered around, walking up and down the streets. About an hour into our escape from Hebrew school, I heard a car horn honk. “ Hi Ellyn, what are you doing here?” It was my mother’s good friend Ruth Shapiro, driving right next to us in her 1964 Cadillac. Busted, I thought. I couldn’t come up with a single good explanation for why I was wandering the streets with Ben. I think I just lamely replied, “Oh hi, Mrs. Shapiro,” and walked on. I prayed she would not tell my parents. We kept on walking, a little bored, if truth be told. We were happy enough to see Mrs. Kane when she came to pick us up at 6 o’clock.
In Grade School - Rabbi Paula
In grade school, I walked back and forth four times every day to school, tagging
after my big brother Eric. We came home every day for lunch and walked back for
the afternoon to our cozy neighborhood Chapman School. Eric was loosely
responsible for my safe delivery in both directions, but I am sure he tried to ditch
me along the way as I was the only girl in a neighborhood of boys. It’s amazing to
consider how much times have changed when I recall those walks to school, three
quarters of a mile along Brighton Avenue (the busiest street on my side of town)
from the time I was five. No parents walked with us and no one worried at all. To
think of parents sending a five-year-old out the backdoor to walk to school is
beyond imagination today!
Corner Store. I am sure it had a name, but we all called it just what it was. We
would often stop on the way home to spend our nickels on candy and I recall
having a mad crush on a crossing guard named Chris. I spent my money on Necco
Wafers or Mars bars for him until my brother told my parents about the
purchases.
grade teacher, Mrs. Merrill, met Eric and me in the large front hall of the school.
She stood taller than the doorways in my memory and asked in a very stern voice
where we had been. I do not remember if Eric and I simply dawdled or if there
was a reason for our late arrival, but as a rule-abiding, adult-pleasing child, I know
that I was devastated by her concern. When I remember that morning, I can feel
the fear and tightness in my little chest. How I wish that I could ask Eric if he
remembers. He always had a much better memory for detail than me. I’ll have to
make it up for both of us.
IN GRADE SCHOOL / “MOM, THE TEACHER HATES ME” - Joe
Welcome to Public School 36 in St Albans, Queens County, New York City and to the 7 th grade history honors class. The neighborhood was white and lower middle class, which was being upgraded after World War II. The classroom was the incubator. Meet some of the characters:
his dad was a dentist.
remembers him).
FDR is President of the United States of America and you’re just another elementary school teacher?”
and to all immigrants who came to America to become citizens. She apologized for me. She would punish me and help me to become a respectful student. I mumbled I would. Miss Carlin and Mrs. Liptrop thanked mom and we left the
office.
1- Yossel is not being thrown out of school.
2-You are not having your citizenship revoked or being deported.
3-I fixed everything
4-Let’s have lunch”
WEEK 6: PROMPT # 12
What was your family doctor like? Was he kind and friendly or were you scared when you had to see him? Did he give out lollipops if you were good? And oh, those shots!
Stories Submitted
My Favorite Games Growing Up - Claire
Win or lose. It didn’t really matter. I’ve always enjoyed playing games.
As a little girl, I would spend a lot of weekends at my maternal
grandparents’ house. We did fun things together but the thing I liked best
was playing games with them. They were long past the time when their own
kids lived at home, so mostly we played cards which were readily available.
We started off with the easy card games like “steal the old man’s bundle“
and “war.” As I got older, the games got harder; rummy, gin rummy and
the like. I’m sure it’s not the card games I was enamored with, but the
enjoyment of playing with my grandparents and having their undivided
attention.
together with my 4 grandsons, the games have gone up a notch in difficulty.
The 2 youngest grandsons, 9 and 14, have learned to play mah jongg and
play a competitive game. The older ones, 16 and 19, play, and have taught
me, Catan, which I found very difficult. If they can tolerate playing it with
me again, I’ll try to do better. As it was when playing with my grandparents,
parents, children, grandchildren or friends, it’s being with the people that’s
the fun.