The summer of 1969 found us in the midst of the
Viet Nam War, but at the end of that long gravel road in Round Spring, there
existed a special Utopia.
It was a place where the only technology might
have been the campers huddling around the cook's radio to witness the landing of
the "first man on the moon."
It was a place where millions of fireflies
mingled along the bluffs of Sinkin' Creek with floating embers from a farewell
bonfire. It was an economy of lanyards, bug spray, disheveled footlockers, and
short cold bottles of pop.
Amidst the splendor of the Ozarks, we came to
dine on "flubber" (peanut butter and honey), pancakes, and mac & cheese,
and every table sat with anticipation waiting for the next miracle of
milk and laughter to exit someone's nose.
From the scratchy call of revelie to the last
sweet slow dance on the tennis court at night, we lived in a magical land where
strangers became memories, and we faced our fears. We knew about the "Good
Ship Titanic" decades before it became a trendy movie, and learned the good
snakes from the bad.
We possessed the first debit cards which faded
with every punch at the canteen. Most important we imprinted a place and faces
in our mind that will never fade away.
It was Zoe...a million flashlight beams on pitch
black paths....a million miles away!
Kent Jones
Counselor 1968-1969
email:
chaos1@discover-net.net
