Essays by Myrna Seidman
In Her Words
A life, one essay at a time
19 essays, from a Brooklyn hardware store in the 1930s to a sukkah at 86. Pick a chapter, search for a place or a name, or let the dice choose.
Myrna’s 90th birthday would have been October 18, 2026.
Stories or essays? Stories are the family histories Myrna recorded, from her parents’ memories to her years in Somalia; essays are the personal pieces she wrote about her own life. Read the stories →
- Chapter oneCross My Heart and Hope to Die5 essays · 1930s–1950s
- Chapter twoA Serendipitous Opportunity5 essays · 1960s–1980s
- Chapter threeInshallah4 essays · 1983–1992
- Chapter fourYou Just Have to Live Long Enough5 essays · 1990s–2023
Cross My Heart and Hope to Die
1930s–1950sBrooklyn, when I was a girl. My father’s hardware store, the war years, our last summer at the kuchalein in Kerhonksen, and a walk with Julie on an unseasonably warm day in March.
Myrna’s older brother Sam and their father outside the family hardware store in Brooklyn. This modest two-aisle store put three children through college on one income, a feat much harder today.- Brooklyn, 1930s–1970s1930s
The Hardware Store
My father’s hardware store was more than a source of income for the family; it was a family enterprise, much like a family farm. We lived just four short blocks from the store; we…
14 min readRead - Brooklyn, 1941–19451941
Remembering the War
I can hardly believe that I have lived so long, having just turned 85, but when I realize that I remember World War II, it seems quite plausible.
12 min readRead - The Catskills1943
A Summer in Kerhonksen
“Hurry up, put those blouses in the suitcase, the car will be here any minute” my mother said. We closed up the suitcases and were downstairs in front of our house waiting, when the…
6 min readRead - Columbus Day1943
A Coloring Book or an Ice Cream
It was Columbus Day, a school holiday, and I was going to my father’s store. Unfortunately, Sam, my older brother would not be coming. He and Bobbie Lewis were going to work on their…
13 min readRead - Brooklyn1954
The Pause
It was an unseasonably warm day in March, and Julie, my boyfriend and I agreed to meet for a walk. He lived less than a half-hour away on the Kings Highway bus, which stopped…
11 min readRead
A Serendipitous Opportunity
1960s–1980sIsrael, where the streets were a Babel; back to school in Ann Arbor; a trip behind the Iron Curtain with my parents; a new house, and an old friend I lost touch with.
Myrna in Mogadishu, early 1980s.- Tel Aviv and Yavne, 1961–19621961
Babel in the Streets of Israel
During my college years in the late 1950s, I read with delight, Leo Rosten’s The Education of Hyman Kaplan where the author describes with humor and poignancy the struggles of new immigrants learning English…
15 min readRead - Ann Arbor, 1972–19741972
Mid-Career Re-set
The seed was planted by my colleague Arnold N., on the train ride between Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia. We were on our way to a meeting when he told me about the On-Job/On-Campus (OJOC)…
11 min readRead - Prague and Romania1974
Behind the Iron Curtain
“How do you feel about joining my parents on a visit to Romania”, I asked Julie, my husband. It was the Spring of 1974, and my parents were planning a second trip to Romania…
13 min readRead - Chevy Chase1976
The New House
I woke up early in anticipation of a full, and probably nerve-wracking, day. We were moving from our house on Locust Road in the District to our new house on Aspen Street in Chevy…
11 min readRead - Washington1980s
Carolyn
Roz L., the perky and competent Director of Personnel at University Research Corporation (URC), where I worked, stopped by my desk and said, “If you want to connect with Carolyn, here is her number,”…
13 min readRead
Inshallah
1983–1992Seven years of work in Somalia, a summer there with Jonathan, the holidays in Nairobi, and an earthquake in Cairo.
Myrna (center, in blue) with colleagues from the Lagos market-based family planning project, Lagos, Nigeria.- Somalia, 1983–19911983
Inshallah: May Allah Will It
I picked up the phone to hear the Western Union operator on the other end. This was the call I was expecting, and eagerly waiting for.
18 min readRead - Somalia and Kenya1986
African Adventure: The Summer of ’86
It was the summer of 1986 and Jonathan, my eldest son had just graduated from Harvard. He had a summer job with Let’s Go, Italy in Rome and I would be working in Somalia.…
17 min readRead - Nairobi1987
Rosh Hashanah in Nairobi
“Spend the holidays in Nairobi” was the advice I received last year when a friend learned that my work would keep me in East Africa over Rosh Hashanah. The idea was appealing, but how…
4 min readRead - Cairo1992
The Cairo Earthquake
Reading about Haiti’s recent earthquake reminded me of being in Cairo in October, 1992 during its earthquake. I was part of a team evaluating a U.S Agency for International Development program training health providers…
9 min readRead
You Just Have to Live Long Enough
1990s–2023As my mother would say, “Then you can see it all.” My mother and father, my brother Sam, girlfriends of almost 70 years, and an afternoon in a succah. I count my blessings each day.
The family in front of the Brooklyn house on Quentin Road, circa 2013. Sadly, Sam and Myrna are no longer with us.- Fort Lauderdale1990s
At Least I Won’t Die a Young Woman
My father retired from his Hardware business in the late 1970s, and a few years later my parents moved to Florida. They settled in Ft Lauderdale where they bought an apartment in a condominium…
13 min readRead - Brooklyn to Oaxaca, 1951–20231951
The Girlfriends
We were 15 when we met, and we would remain girlfriends for almost 70 years. I met Molly first. Her family were members of the Marine Park synagogue in Brooklyn, where my family belonged,…
15 min readRead - On her mother2019
I Was Born Too Soon
My mother frequently expressed the feeling that she had been born too soon. I heard the regret and sadness many times when I was growing up. She said it when she felt her life…
5 min readRead - Sukkot, at 862022
Fragile Booths, Fragile Lives
It was a beautiful weekend for succah hopping. The sun shone brightly, the air was crisp and though it was mid-October, the weather was mild enough for us to sit in the succah, chat…
7 min readRead - January 102023
Eulogy for Sam
Since my brother passed away last Wednesday, I have been flooded with memories of him, many of them about our childhood. Just the two of us, sitting or lying on the floor, playing games,…
10 min readRead
For Mom
2024Jesse’s eulogy at Adat Shalom, February 5, 2024
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Also see Stories from my Mother.