My name is Joseph Curtis, but my friends call me Joe or Bud. I was born on April 7th, 1922, in Greenwich Village, in New York City. My parents Catherine McCarthy and Joseph Curtis, moved us to Ozone Park, where we lived in a flat most of my childhood. I had two sisters Margaret and Katherine and I was the middle child. Both of my sisters were very accommodating to me and smart in school. My mother was very Irish, from a family of 10 children. She was a good Catholic with strong beliefs; she did every thing in an exaggerated way and very fast. She would clean fast and cook fast. My mother was extremely social and she knew all the neighbors. All people to her were either bums or darlings and she saw no shades in people. She loved to play cards and was gregarious and a women of tomorrow. She was a good judge of people, but did not believe in second chances for people. There are two unforgettable things I remember about her. There was a butcher across the street and his name was Mr. Haas, she would call him Fat Haas. I also remember the day she came home from shopping and had dropped the bag of groceries which had the eggs in them, 11 of the eggs had broken and she took the 12th egg and broke it also stating, "What am I going to do with one egg." My father was a police officer in NYC. He smoked a pipe and was very soft spoken. He liked to spend his time listening to the radio. He could play the piano by ear and would spend hours doing so. He never used obscene language; his saying when he was upset was either holy crackers or holy scissors. One unforgettable moment with him was when we rented a bungalow in Rockaway. I was swimming and went too far out in the water, the life guard had to bring me back in. I remember my father's terrified face and how upset at the fact that I could've have drowned. I just grabbed his hand and we walked away. The one thing my father taught me was to always cool it, calm down, whatever the situation, it is not as bad as it seems. But mother said explosions where permissible, don't be a push over, stand up for your self. I inherited from my parents the love of the piano and the love for baseball and Ice hockey. Also my father taught me to be extremely honest. I became a policeman like my father. Growing up my earliest memory was at age 4 or 5. My grandmother sent me downstairs to the bakery; we were on the 4th floor, to get a quart of milk. She gave me a quarter and I got the milk and I kept the change in my hand, but as I was walking up the stairs this teenage boy saw I had the money and knocked me down, spilling the milk and taking the change. Grandma yelled at me when I told her the story. The lesson I learned was not to show what money you have, put it away in a pocket, and also have a plan in case you are in trouble, look for another way out. I remembered this lesson when I was in combat; always have an alternate route to escape, and to be aware of my surroundings. Also, have an alternative plan for life. My favorite celebration growing up was Christmas. It was always the best time. My parents made a big deal out of the holiday, Dickens would have been proud. We had the best tree, best cider, the best food, and the best of mother would come out, always pampering us. Father would bring us toys; I remember army tanks and trains. I had a wonderful Christmas' at home for my first 17 years. My true love was Ruthie, Ruth Anderson. We where married for 44 years and I lost her 12 years ago. She was beautiful, very articulate and a warm person. My marriage was wonderful. She was the person who kept me calm. I would rage sometimes and she would say, slow down Joe, think about it for a while and calm down. We had a wonderful marriage and 8 beautiful daughters. The advise I would give for a wonderful marriage, is to be loyal, no substitute just loyalty and honesty. My secret for living the good life is each night say thank you God for life's opportunities. I had a few bad experiences, but had a fabulous wife to share life with. Also, treat life as a grand opportunity to do good things, treat life as a gift from God. Make friends while you are growing up is the most important life lesson I have learned, some day you will need friends later in life. Treat people as you would like to be treated, and there is so much good in people. I want the next generations to never forget the horrors of war; it takes more than reading a history book to understand the destruction of wars.