A simple pleasure that only cost 25 cents a gallon was a drive to anywhere
We would pile into the family car skirmishing for the coveted window seat
We cranked the windows down, the car-generated breeze kept us cool
Making our eyes water, but who cared— we were in the car
The journey took us through industrial sites and neighborhoods of black and brown
Through citrus orchards not yet turned to asphalt and concrete
A stretch of winding two-lane highway took us to the top of South Mountain
Where we would find a picnic area that gave us a view of the valley
A picnic of charred hot dogs, potato salad and a slice of cold watermelon sated our appetites
Washed it down with a jug of lemonade or tepid tap water provided by the park system
We clambered over the boulders, played hide and seek, threw stones until exhausted
No one cared where they sat on the way home

It was Sunday and it was summer