Santa Cruz, 1969, by Susan Moger

 

Waves like silk lick sand
like concrete
While the roller coaster flies,
We’re on planet California
getting wrecked and telling lies.
For the war casts a long shadow,
And it takes a lot of wine,
To pretend it doesn’t matter,
Back in 1969.

__________________

Note on the Photograph:

I attended a workshop with Ansel Adams at UC Santa Cruz in July 1969. This photo was one of several he chose to display at the end of one shooting day—a great honor! The war was everywhere and nowhere at the same time.

Everywhere: One evening while I was in CA I got a call from a friend who’d been arrested in Manhattan (where I lived) for destroying NYC draft board files. The files were stolen and shredded and tossed like confetti a few days after the actual attack on the draft board. That’s when the arrests occurred. The group was Women Against Daddy Warbucks and several of the members were friends of mine.
Nowhere: I went from the phone call to an impromptu group exercise (not part of the Photography Workshop) in trust, falling backward while members of group caught you.