So nice to see you after such
a long time.
Where have you been?
Tell me, what did you find?
Did you ever make it to the end of your rainbow?
We’re still here, and still grateful.
In this paper we’ve woven together little snippets
from freepapers we’ve written over the years.
They tell the story of our journey from the
radical questions of the ’60s to the radical
life that answers those questions…
Haight-Ashbury! What magic
these two words had in our minds! A society
of free young spirits founded on love, peace,
and freedom, where equality and fraternity
could just be! From far and near we grabbed
our backpacks and left home. We dropped out
of school and hit the road. By air, foot, bikes,
or hitching, our 20th century exodus had begun.
Our Moses was Timothy Leary. Our Promised Land
was San Francisco across the Golden Gate. When
we arrived, we were accepted. No one asked
any questions. No one made any demands. No
one was watching. No one had to prove anything.
We were just ourselves and everyone was happy.
We were really living our dreams. We could
come and go as we pleased. We could wear
what we pleased. There were no deadlines,
no grades, no projects, no points to score.
We did not care about money, no one was trying
to impress, material things didn’t matter.
Only people mattered. Easy alliances were
formed. Love was free. No demands. No commitment.
Old taboos were ignored, barriers knocked
down and spirits were high. No one was killing
anybody, and people were beautiful. Joan
Baez called it togetherness, and she was
right. Men and women throughout all generations
have been looking for that bond of love that
would make them one. The desire for an end
to estrangement and hostility runs deep in
the human soul. The toughest nut will crack
under the right pressure and the hardest
heart will yield to love, understanding,
and a little kindness. The most estranged
and antagonistic person will respond to interest
and concern, once his suspicions have been
allayed. This togetherness is what we wanted
and what we thought we had found. This was
the life of the flower children. Read More...
“Come together!” was the cry in the heart
of the ’60s generation, fueled by a desire
for a love we sensed was possible and a justice
we knew the world needed. Woodstock gave us
hope that people could actually come together
and love one another, caring for each other,
sticking together like glue. Read
More...
We fried our brains, wrecked our emotions,
and did irreparable damage to our consciences
trying to come together because Christianity
did not provide the life of love and unity
we needed. Since Christianity failed, drugs,
sex, and rock & roll were the only hope
we had. “If by being Christians we must live
as Christians live, then we will not be Christians
at all,” we said. “Please don’t tell us of
your Jesus who died on a cross to save sinners
unless you can show us who he has saved lately
that actually lives by his teachings! Read
More...
The counter-culture landscape of the ’60s
teemed with radicals, extremists, idealists,
and revolutionaries lurking around every corner.
Mainstream society hated these trouble makers,
these communists, but we loved their passion
for peace and justice. Abbie Hoffman and Jerry
Rubin jumping up and down on the table in the
Chicago courtroom in 1968 didn’t rankle us;
they had bucked the system and won a great
victory. Hope welled up within us that maybe
we could change the Establishment. But were
we truly radicals? Did our roots go down into
a life-giving source that could sustain us
and bring about the goals of the Movement?
No! Time and time again we went home dismayed
and frustrated. Eventually we left the Movement
and fell back into the same system from which
we had tried to escape. Read
More...
Printer-friendly
Still
Grateful 2009
