This week my wife Wendy and I will start a two-week liver cleanse. It’s not one of those water-mixed-with-cayenne-pepper deals and for that I’m thankful. Under a nutritionist’s guidance, we will eat brown rice, beans, sweet potatoes, fruit, anything green and leafy and temporarily go without caffeine and alcohol. I’m looking forward to it, except for the no caffeine and alcohol part.
As I read through the literature the nutritionist provided, full of references to circles of life and inner awakenings, my cynicism kicked in. I pictured myself sitting cross-legged on the floor while Caravanserai played in the background and incense burned. But then I realized that many ideals espoused by “Hippies,” including organic food and maintaining a proper spiritual and physical balance, were subject to mockery. That is, until they became cherished and accepted as part of our mainstream.
We recognize now that the Hippie movement wasn’t all great music and love-ins. It was a lifestyle largely practiced by privileged white kids who had the luxury to make those choices, several of which no doubt led to troubles later in life. (For a biting, yet largely sympathetic fictionalized take on the Hippie culture, read the excellent book Drop City by T.C. Boyle.)
But the thing is, Hippies got it right more often than not. It’s evident in the green recycling bins at the ends of driveways not just in San Francisco and Boston but throughout every Red and Blue region of our country. Or in Apple, a brand built by a visionary shaped largely by his Hippie-era values. Or in those of you taking to Facebook, Twitter and other networks to ensure your voice is heard about issues you believe are vital to our freedoms.
Keep letting the sunshine in.
shishkabobgirldad 