HIGBEE, Mo. — Clifford Smith is turning through the pages of his memory.
A native of Higbee, Missouri, Smith is a World War II veteran who joined up the day after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor.
"I was incensed about that and so I wanted to join as soon as possible," he said.
A short time later, he was part of an Army Air Force crew flying bombing missions from Saipan.
"We were flying B-29's which had a 9 man crew, it had four 2,000 horsepower engines," he explained.
But he adds they were shot down on their very first assignment.
"We had to ultimately ditch in the Pacific, so we were among the missing for a while," Smith said.
Smith said they were rescued by a US submarine and by the time the war was over, he would be a part of 31 missions. His friend Roy Wall is a military historian.
"If the Air Force didn't win the war, they certainly shortened the war," Wall said.
After coming home, he and his wife Irene raised three children while he worked as a mechanical engineer for Ralston-Purina.
And at the age of 75 when the word hip is usually followed by the word replacement, he started buying Kawasaki motorcycles.
"The last one was 1200cc and was advertised to go 179 miles per hour!" he exclaimed.
He gave up riding just a few years ago and now he's getting ready to turn another corner. His 100th birthday.
"To live that long you have to live what we term the good life," Wall said.
"It feels exceptional. I never dreamed I was going to get this old," Smith said.
He said he's no hero but when you helped save the world, no other word seems to apply. It's been quite a journey for Clifford Smith and he continues to enjoy the ride.
"I would do it all over again," he said.