Translated from the Yiddish by Laurie Liberty

My mother's family knew him as Uncle Sid. I never knew of my great uncle Shea Tenenbaum until the winter of 2007 when I was helping my mother with her genealogy searches. I discovered that we had a prolific Yiddish writer in the family. Aside from translating a language I did not know, these stories not only resurrect a family of people who would have been long forgotten, but are a testament to overcoming the worst adversity. Each person that survived made something of themselves out of less than nothing, with the exception of one woman, yet her descendants became very successful in their chosen vocations. Presented here is a journey through time to a country called Poland and a typical but eccentric Jewish family. I present this is a tribute to their very existence.

About the Author

Shea Tenenbaum a prolific Yiddish writer of poems, stories, miniatures, essays, articles, and novels was born in the village of Bobrinik, Lublin district, Poland.  During WWI he moved with his parents to Koriv (Kurów), later to Pilev (Puławy).  He studied in religious elementary school and in a Jewish public school.  At age thirteen he apprenticed to be a typesetter, before making his way to Belgium where he lived in Antwerp and Brussels, working in publishing houses and textile factories. In1934 on he emigrated to the United States.