26 REMINISCE.COM * JULY 2018
There he was, standing
outside her window.What a
macho guy,I thought. His dark,
wavy hair curled down the
center of his forehead, similar
to the style Fonzie wore on
the TV showHappy Days,onlythis was well before that time.
I swooned and tried not to
show it as Sidney and I made
casual conversation about his
exploits the day before in the
school yard where, according
to him, “the guys tossedD
uring my last year
of junior high
school, in 1958 ,
we moved to a
neighborhood in
East Flatbush/Brownsville,
Brooklyn, New York. It was
rough at first, but I finally
made friends with a girl named
Sarah and often visited her
after school.
After I made a few trips to
her family’s apartment, Sarah
asked me if I’d like to meet
her friend Sidney, who lived
in the building next door. I
agreed, not thinking too much
about it. A few days later I was
at her home when she looked
out her kitchen window and
said, “He’s here.”
“Who?” I asked.
“Sidney,” she said. “Let’s go!”FRIENDLY IN FLATBUSH
His pickup line proved quite literal.
BY SHELLY SITZER • CHARLOTTESVILLE, VATrue Love
SIDNEY SCOOPED up
Shelly in his arms and
carried her home.Share your true love stories:
REMINISCE.COM/
SUBMIT-A-STORYaround a girl they knew like
a football.”
“What do you mean?”
I asked, rather naively. I don’t
remember whether I was just
startled or totally impressed.
“Like this,” he said, and he
lifted me up. “We’re going
home,” he added. I asked
Sarah if it would be all right
with her if we left. I suspected
that she also had a crush
on Sidney.
“It’s OK,” she told us.
My home was a few blocks
away, and he carried me as if
I was a featherweight. Once
there, we sat and talked on the
bench outside. My mom saw
him from a distance when she
returned home and told me
later that she thought I was
talking to a teacher. He looked
much more mature than I did.
When he told me he was 17
and asked my age, something
told me not to say 14 ½. So I
said I was 15.
The next day he told Sarah
he wanted to call me and “drag
me to the beach.” She gave
him my number.
We looked at romance
differently then, that’s for
sure. But this was the real
thing. Sidney and I were
married in 1965. After being
married to my macho guy
for more than 50 years —and
three children later —I can
truly say he’s been the best
husband that any gal could
possibly have.We looked
at romance
differently then,
that’s for sure.
OUR LIVES