The Sixties and Love-Ins

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The Sixties and Love-ins

By Michael Erlewine

Of course the sixties was not all about feelingresponsible although we did wake up enough toreflect and respond to the world around us and toeach other.

But we also had a lot of fun dancing, loving,celebrating, and so on, as well. And lets not forgetthe Love-ins. I bet most of you reading this havenever been to a love-in, nor do you have the vaguestidea of what actually went on at them. You shouldknow about love-ins because they were perhapsunique to the Sixties. Let me describe to you just onelove-in event, as best I can. Words are not enough, soyou will have to tune into my intention here and try tofeel it.

It is a bright spring day on the campus of theUniversity of Michigan in Ann Arbor. The centralcampus, what is called the Diag (Diagonal), is a largewalkway that runs diagonally across campus. Thatday in the warm sun it was dotted with studentssunning themselves on the grass -- talking, studying,and the like. There are no cars there, just walks,trees, grass, and students.

At the far end of the walkway (near State Street) asmall group of mostly students appear. They arewalking slowly, but rather close together. Nothing tooodd about this, but there is one thing. For somereason the atmosphere around them is charged withan electric-like interconnectedness, some kind ofsocial magnetism that spread like ripples in a pond

across the campus. You could feel the electricity fromfar away and it made the hair stand up on the back ofyour neck. Everyone on the Diag was somehow

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suddenly connected and we all knew it. And this iswhere words cannot express the reality.

As the small group moves along the walkway, almostnothing is said. A few members of the group beckonwith their hands as if to say Join us, and there issome soft voicing that simply says We are going tothe Arboretum to be together for a love-in. I dontremember if the word love-in was evermentioned. Idont think so. We were in the process of defining the

word.One by one students who were scattered along theDiag began to join in. Instinctively people just stoodup and begin to follow along. We all knew.something is happening and we are part of it. Thegroup grows until it is a small crowd and the group isall moving together across the Diag. It is now quite alot of people, definitely a crowd, but a very quiet and

gentle crowd. Somehow everyone knows thatsomething special is happening that they already feela part of. Few words are said, as one by one thestudents drop what they are doing and just comealong.

When the crowd reaches the end of the Diag, theyslowly move up South University Street, cross

Washtenaw Avenue, and on up through fraternity rowand into Nichols Arboretum on Geddes Ave. As forwhat happened next, you could say nothing much oreverything. There were no speeches, no leaders, andno politics, just scores of students on the green hills ofthe arboretum sitting in the sun on the grass with oneanother. And it went on like this for hours if Iremember right.

There was no agenda other than being together. As Imentioned, no speeches, no leaders. The sense of

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subtle electricity or connectedness held each of us ina web of energy, much like stars are set in the sky.

We belonged together.And we were very, very high and I dont evenremember any dope being there. And sex and nudityhad nothing to do with these love-in, although theremay have been some. It was just a moment in time, aday or a part of day, when things just naturally cametogether. For all I know it was a peak that surfaces

once in a thousand years. I have no idea, but I willnever forget it. That is a glimpse into what love-inswere in the 1960s before they became intentionalevents..

Words are too coarse to capture the beauty andgentleness of these happenings. Were those that

joined in destined for this, somehow knowing that theymust leave what they were doing and come be with

one another? I have no idea. What held us togetherwas the most fragile of webs, not something youcould explain to anyone if they did not already know.Everyone there just knew.

Of course later on love-ins were planned events thatwere merchandised, had a schedule, music, food,politics, etc. These early love-ins were not the same.

In the beginning love-ins were spontaneoushappenings that swept all of us together like rays dothe Sun, holding us in just being. And we shone.