It was just one of those passing thoughts. A memory from the 1950's, when we were returing from Hawaii. We spent some time with my grandmother, my great-aunt Georgia, and my great-uncle Henry in Long Beach, CA, and we were on our way to San Diego, for my dad's new assignment. I can remember the "highway" that ran through Camp Pendleton from Capistrano to Oceanside. It wasn't the multi-lane freeway back then, parts of the old highway are used as frontage roads, so you can still see them. When we were on the road, it was two lane blacktop with very few places allowing passing, but the young Marines, emboldened by alcohol, would always take foolish risks.
I was in the "way back," the cargo area of a 1956 Ford station wagon. It was '56, or '57. so I was five or six, and my older sisters were in the back seat. Cars didn't have seat belts back then, so we were all "loose" inside the car. I was looking forward, and only just caught the headlamp of another car bouncing off the rear quarter panel of the wagon. Suddenly, the car tilted to the right, my dad was steering the car on the right two wheels, and he yelled, "Everyone lean left!"
I clamored ove some luggage, trying to wedge myself between the bags and the left rear wheel well. My sisters screamed, but tried to get as far over as they could, and just as suddenly, we were back on four wheels, my dad braking for the accident that had occurred a few cars in front of us. The car full of young Marines had hit a number of vehicles as it careened down the highway, cars traveling in both directions, mostly fender dings, but a couple of harder impacts until it launched over the trunk of a stopped vehicle, and came down on its top some 100 feet further down the beach. We were briefly detained as witnesses, and duly gave our statements to a CHP officer. The only damage to the station wagon was a paint smudge and a chip, so we were on our way pretty quickly.
I don't know why that came back, but it woke me up a couple of days ago.
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