Cecelia McCarty

I was born and raised in Southern California. When I was in elementary school we moved from Temple City to Glendora to escape the smog. That was back when So Calif was still mostly orange groves, dairies and strawberry fields with snow capped Mt. Baldy in the back ground.

The air was so clean and fresh it would sparkle like diamonds. From the San Dimas mountains we could see all the way to Catalina Island too.

We spent out summers in Oceanside by the lagoon, where the harbor is now. I learned to water ski in the lagoon when I was 8 years old and we practiced our surfing skills running downhill and jumping on paddleboards in the lagoon.

My first surfboard was a Velsy Jacobs balsa wood board with a reverse skeg. We built our first skateboards using rollerskate wheels and 2x4s.

Life was a bowl of cherries and we were all immortal. I wish the kids today had even 1/2 of what we had.

I want my country back!