Summer of 1961 - Memory to a Friend

In the summer of 1961 – Balas invited me to come up with Hart and stay in Sutton’s Bay for about 10 days – it was in late July early August I think – just before our senior year

Balas and I think Hart had been cooking this up for some time. -

One night after they had made contact, earlier in the day, with some older guy - in his early twenties – a friend of Balas’ brother, but a local guy – kind of a rough acting adolescent young adult – dark hair and aggressive and was able to buy alcohol

I think all of you three talked this guy into getting a case of beer for us.

So this night we decided we'd "take off" and to go and drink the beer away from the beaches, the houses away from the rest of the families.

None of us had drank before - we knew this was it - this is the the first time - the first time we might get drunk . . . and all that.

I told all of you, I didn’t want any beer – I had seen and heard so much by watching my mom and dad as recovered alcoholics, active in AA for the last 14 years - I knew where I was with drinking – I was clear - I had no interest - so we chose me to drive.

There we were - four happy and playful 16 and 17 year old Michigan boys - looking forward to our senior year at Grosse Pointe High - driving all around the Leelanau county - on and off main Hwy 22 in the middle of the night – in Harts light blue ‘54 hard top, two door Ford – ya know, the one with the glass cover over the top over the speedometer on the dashboard – going about 60

We had been out for a bit – you guys were on your 2nd or third beer – I think this guy took a six pack as his fee - the 3 of you had your own 6 pack – I believe you were in the front with me - Balas was in the back with Hart.

We were all laughing: Balas kept trying to get me take one beer - he said . . "take 3, then it will be 5 for the rest of us and you can have them later - then he talked me into at least taking a drink – I took a sip – but yuck, hated beer – so anyway, we were just driving along.

THEN: for a moment time seemed to stop - there felt like a stillness . . . . I kept looking . . . . at you guys . . . individually . . . in the mirror . . . we really were zipping along – BUT all of a sudden - it was if there was such utter silence - so loud in the space - it made me realize, in my sober fun state, I had taken my eyes and ALL My Attention completely off the road - in an instant – even before I could turn and look – I knew we were in deep trouble - I knew, by feeling the passing trees, the car some how - and now us - were speeding way over the Center-line – as I turned my head, my attention to the road, in the dark, with the laughter, with the teenage wildness - in the silence - I saw the tall 3 foot wide, low branch Oak tree - directly ahead of us – about 50 feet and coming fast – Hwy 22 was making a sharp 75 degree right turn - and we were already 3 feet over the centerline - about 10 feet from the edge of the road. . .

That moment I have relived about 100 times in my life – that moment, when time froze and calmness and surrender took over my life for one of the first times I can recall

I relaxed completely - I just seemed to let go and said to myself in a calm manner – now just do not hit the tree . . .steer to the left of the tree . . .hold on tight. . .don’t yell . . .don’t move . . .just slightly adjust the steering wheel . . .angle to the left of the tree and do it slowly NOW . . .pay attention . . .take the foot off the accelerator . . .prepare to brake . . .hold on tight

The next moment was so simply experienced - instantly relieving me of any sense of fear or guilt or concern - every muscle tenseness left me – for in front of me was a hidden, dark, flat and well paved country road – all I could do was watch and allow – there was not one sense of wanting to talk or move or do anything as we continued down that road into the night, into the dark and into our laughter.

In that instant I felt present and satisfied; I was alive, young and with my friends.