Summer of Love/Triumph

(1994 Newspaper column written by once and former PTIPS contributor, may he rest in peace)

When The Moon Was In The Seventh House, And Man Was on The Moon

By DALTON FLEMING

This week we observed the 25th anniversary of man's first landing on the moon. Next month, we will mark another quarter-century anniversary -- that of the Woodstock music festival.

It was in the summer of 1969 that the Age of Apollo and the Age of Aquarius intersected in what could only in retrospect be viewed as a harmonic convergence. After all, the two events and the persons involved in them could hardly have been more divergent.

One was a triumph of diligence, technology and daring that gave America the victory in a hard-fought Cold War competition and made suddenly possible a life among the stars. The other was a similarly implausible triumph of a spontaneous spirit of generosity that slipped the bonds of convention and launched hopes of a Utopian future on Earth.

As different as the two events may have been, the visions they represented briefly united two generations of dreamers who, entirely independent of one another, set their sights on the common goal of a better future. Ultimately, both visions were grounded in a harsh reality that dictated neither would be quite the giant leap for mankind its participants imagined.

The best way to commemorate those events is to remember what about them inspired us and made us believe all they symbolized was not only possible, but within our easy reach.

Of the two events, I identify most closely with Woodstock, if only because the awesome spectacle of manned space exploration remains for me a miracle of technology beyond my comprehension. Music as an expression of freedom and brotherly love is a concept much easier for me to fathom.

I was, nevertheless, part of the global village that sat mesmerized in front of a television when cameras beamed the historic images back to Earth as Neil Armstrong climbed onto the lunar surface in an act that somehow changed everything. I remember thinking that if I walked outside and gazed up at the moon, it would no longer look the same. I'm not sure it ever did.

If, as a teenager, I was already brought to the verge of cynicism by other events of the day -- assassinations, an unpopular war, racial strife -- the lunar landing for a time forestalled my pessimism about man's fate. Like most of my generation, I also witnessed Woodstock from afar -- on a movie screen. Still, the essence of what transpired was nearly as awe-inspiring as Apollo 11's trip to the moon.

A half-million people assembled for three days in a makeshift community celebrating peace and love while the politics of war and hate that ravaged our society seemed a planet away. In subsequent viewings of the Woodstock documentary, I am always transported to a place where rage and tyranny are nonexistent and hope prevails.

The Woodstock dream was declared officially shattered by year's end when another gathering of young people culminated in chaos and murder. Future developments paved the way for an era of self-centeredness and greed. For me, disillusionment came in personal experiences that made me realize my generation would not be better than the one before it simply because we wished it to be.

Still, among many individuals of that generation, a glowing ember of idealism endures, awaiting the spark of some social ill to inflame our passions again in a common cause.

Manned space exploration has continued through adversity and tragedy, but many of its once limitless possibilities are unrealized and its future is in doubt. It's not only the financial wherewithal we seem to lack, but the resolve to reach for the stars when there are so many challenges unmet here at home.

Yet, it is fitting to look for inspiration to a time when all things seemed possible, and to mark these anniversaries as people united not in failure, but in our striving. Our stride may have been shortened, but we continue to take the steps that will eventually carry us to our destination as long as we don't abandon the journey.