John O'Dwyer was born in Auckland, NZ in 1926, the 7th of the 8 children born to Denis and Sarah O'Dwyer. The 8 children were raised through the two world wars and the Great Depression in Auckland, Wellington and on farms in the King Country and Hawkes Bay. Despite, or perhaps because of, the deprivations and chaos of the 1930s and 1940s, a strong bond formed between all the siblings which lasted throughout their adult lives. John became a grandfather when he was 75 years old and did not expect to live long enough to pass on his story to his grandchildren. He wrote these memoirs in his own conversational style so that his grandchildren might learn about their grandfather, his family and the times which shaped them. These informative and readable anecdotes reveal the hard work, aspirations and values that formed the legacy for Denis and Sarah's many descendants.