Miss Gloria's latest: The Age of Aquarius

The Age of Aquarius

Like many people I like to allow my mind to wander back to the past, the “good ol’ days”. Yeah,
I know, not all of them were good. I was listening to a CD I’d burned for myself and “Age of
Aquarius/Let the Sun Shine” came on and I started to think about what it meant. I realize the
lyrics of this song were based on the astrological belief that the world would soon be entering
the "Age of Aquarius", an age of love, light, and humanity, somewhere the near the end of
the 20th century. (Boy, I don’t remember that happening!) I’m sure there were other, more
complicated, more “new age” meanings but to me it was simply representative of the times.

It was hippies, flower children with fringed vests, long flowing dresses while wearing a garland
of entwined flowers in their hair, great music, young people just starting to “find themselves”,
Woodstock, a man on the moon, and “Make Love-Not War”.

It’s been said that the sixties was the decade that brought America’s innocence to an end. It may
be true because there was the dark side of the decade as well. The Manson directed Tate and
LaBianca murders, “Hell no, we won’t go!”, “Hey LBJ, how many babies did you kill today?”
Then there were lots of protest songs. “War! What is it good for? Absolutely NOTHIN’!” It was
a time when our soldiers returning from Viet Nam weren’t treated with banners and flowers;
instead were spit on and called “baby killers”. That shames me about our American society more
than many other things.

It was a decade when I was a teenager walking around with Ben Franklin style rose tinted
glasses. Even though I’d been raised mostly in the Air Force, I didn’t “get it”. I was too wrapped
up in the music, teen angst, the idea that aliens were going to come down one day and grab all
the girls with pierced ears (where the heck did we get that idea??), and my biggest concern was
whether or not I could talk Mom into letting me have her hot pink Rambler with those fin tail
lights for at least an hour to cruise up and down through LaFollette.

So what can I do about it all? Nothing. I can apologize to the veterans (though I’d never shown
any disrespect) and appreciate the fact that today’s war heroes are treated much better. I can help
try to educate my children and grandchildren so they’ll have an open mind and a kind heart. I can
also look back with fondness on the good memories of that decade, and I have many.

But for now, I’m going to crank up the volume and let the 5th Dimension tell me all about
the “Age of Aquarius” for the millionth time.