From his grandmother's home in Bay Shore, NY this author found the Hope and Joy of Christmas celebrated each year. Summers found him and his cousin Ajay sneaking through boat building & repair yards, passenger terminals and fishermen wharves. The adventures were numerous, and so were the spankings. Meantime, tree-forts, wooded land and open fields provided more conventional venues for imaginative battlegrounds, safaries, World-Series games and Super Bowl showdowns. Starting at the age of seven, the excitement of taking a fire engine to a blazing general alarm fire seemed well within grasp while riding to parade sites as a member of the local Junior Fireman organization. An appreciation for mountaineering and wild creatures was gained from canoeing and hiking in the Adirondack Mountains of NY. Being picked-on and made-fun-of kept this author's feet firmly grounded in reality, while fostering humility. Yet the harsh realities of being bullied would later serve for motivation leading to athletic scholarships, serving aboard oceangoing steamships to foreign lands, and finally molding a heart of compassion to serve the local community (and beyond). Throughout it all, the Hope and Joy of Christmas continue to guide this author's heart.
