August 9th (2 page)

Dear Tess,

I hope you received my letter and at least found it interesting and a compliment. I didn’t make a copy but I remember most of what I wrote.

It’s been two years since the Led Zeppelin concert and I’ve probably relived those few seconds when our eyes met a thousand times. I still don’t know how to explain what happened or how your face can be so clear in my mind.

Speaking of concerts and music it’s hard to believe Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison all died in the past ten months and all at twenty-seven. I never saw Hendrix but I did see and love Janis and the Doors.

I do remember writing you about my opposition to this insane Vietnam War. Thank God for Daniel Ellsberg and the New York Times and the release of the Pentagon Papers that clearly shows the brutality and dishonesty of our government. I guess the heat was
turned up so hot Washington had no choice but to pass the 26th Amendment lowering the voting age to eighteen. Soldiers who can die for their country certainly should be able to vote. We’d have no wars if those leaders who send us to war had to physically lead the infantry charge.

Tess, I know I told you I’m a Business major but I’m not sure I told you what year. I’ll be starting my senior year and if I can pull off the financial end of things I’m thinking of going to Stanford for my MBA. I went up there last month to check out the campus and surrounding area. Everything was very impressive and there seems to be so much energy and exciting things happening. There’s also a bunch of new companies that are hiring almost every MBA graduate from Stanford. The big problem is I would be away from Maggie for at least a year. That’s why I’m also considering UCLA and USC. No matter what I’ve got to take out a student loan. My parents still have my younger sister at home and I don’t want them to pay for my graduate degree with Janet starting college in a year.

Strangely, I’m not sure what to ask you. I’d like to know so much more about you like where you’re from, if you’re in a relationship, what you’re studying, and what you enjoy doing besides rock concerts and your sorority stuff. Then I quickly realize knowing more would really complicate things. Perhaps it’s best you remain a mystery? I really don’t know why I’m even sending you another letter since I didn’t receive a response to my
first. I know I’m talking in circles which is something I rarely do with my left brain logical mind.

Hope all is well in your world and thanks for taking the time to read my second letter.

Hi Tess,

Here I am, once again, and I still see you at least once a day.

Not sure at what point, or how many letters it will take to constitute a pattern or habit but for an unknown reason I look forward to writing and mailing you these letters. I did have a thought that it’s entirely possible these letters are being sent to someone else, by mistake, and somewhere a seventy-five year old woman or twenty year old long haired hippie are laughing their ass off at this crazy, romantic business student who keeps sending very personal letters to a woman he’s never met or even received a response.

Sadly I’ll be saying goodbye to UCLA but it was the best four years of my life. The best part of my graduation was seeing the pride on my mother and father’s faces. I was their baby and they witnessed each and every step of my journey, supporting me all along the way.
And graduating with honors sweetened everything and brought all three of us to tears. I only hope I inherited their wonderful parenting skills.

I’m excited to be going to Stanford for my MBA and found a little studio apartment about a mile from campus. It’s going to be tough without Maggie but we’ll work it out. I plan to fly or drive down to LA often and she can also come up here. The bigger question is what she does after she graduates in June. She’s a psychology major and that probably means grad school. She’s applied to a bunch of schools with Cal being at the top of her list. If that happens, and with her grades it should, we can rent a place between the two schools that are about forty-five miles apart.

Well, there appears to be two things we can count on, one bad and one good. The horrific war in Southeast Asia continues as our government feebly attempts to justify all the killing. On the good side, and on a much lighter note, we can depend on UCLA basketball which has now won an unprecedented six championships in a row. Don’t think I’ve mentioned this but I played basketball in high school and was pretty good, for high school. I optimistically thought I could play at UCLA because I played there in a summer league.

Although I was offered a basketball scholarship at several schools, including UCSB, I decided to literally shoot for the moon and went to UCLA without any financial assistance. That meant I tried out as a walk-on. My first practice quickly brought me back to earth. Everyone was taller, faster and just better than me. It
was a blow to my ego but in the long run it was probably the best thing that could have happened. I was able to concentrate on studies and at least met some unbelievable athletes and of course, the Wizard of Westwood, Coach Wooden.

I can’t help but wonder what might have happened if I went to UCSB. Would we have met and, if so, would we have looked at each other the same way? Is that possible? The twist and turns of our lives are amazing.

Tess, I’m not sure when you graduate and I can only hope you’ll have your mail forwarded to your new address. I’ll understand if that presents a problem with a boyfriend or even your husband, but I choose to believe you will continue to receive and read my letters. However, should a letter be returned I’ll understand and gratefully wish you a wonderful, happy and fulfilling life.

Tess,

Here we are again and I hope life finds you wonderfully happy.

Think you’ve probably graduated from UCSB and can’t help but wonder what life holds for you? Then again, I hope my letters are actually reaching you. Your image flashes before me all the time and would create some very awkward moments if people could read the smile on my face when I see you.

Finally, finally we’re done with that crazy war. First the Paris Peace Accords that provide a cease fire were signed in January and then our last troops left at the end of March. It’s too little, too late, but it’s about time and hopefully we’ve learned our lesson.

I just love Stanford and Palo Alto. If you’re unfamiliar with the area it’s the southern portion of the San Francisco Bay and actually a peninsula. The campus is called the Farm because it was built on the site of the
founder’s actual family farm. It’s a very different environment from UCLA, much smaller, but even more stimulating with all sorts of exciting new technological innovation that has practical application for the real world. There’s a feeling of being surrounded by big thinkers who push the envelope of conventionality and look for new instead of just better. People here really believe we’re going to affect positive change and see Stanford as one of the top universities in the country.

Much of the credit for this atmosphere has to be given to the Stanford president, Richard Lyman. Against the War he also has a deep belief in academic freedom and free speech. He’s been able to balance those positions with an unwavering opposition to violent protests and sit-ins.

Studies in my first year were about general management, more specifically, strategy, systems and leadership. My favorite course was in a seminar setting where we’d analyze and debate issues that arise in management situations. This year will be much more personalized. I’m particularly interested in the financial challenges of start-up companies, funding options and capital structure. I’m excited to start interviewing with companies based in the area and setting up that interaction is one of the things Stanford does just about better than any other college.

My neighbor, Jeff, is a graduate student in engineering. The stuff he’s working on is well beyond my comprehension but what little I understand is fascinating. We joke about starting our own company, but that’s not
unusual because talk like that is all over campus. Jeff takes pride in being labeled a nerd. All I know is he’s constantly working on something new and always has a Dr. Pepper in his hand. His apartment looks like a hardware store that was just hit by a tornado.

Another big difference between Stanford and UCLA is the surrounding area. UCLA has Westwood and the lurking behemoth of LA and a multitude of industries probably led by entertainment while Stanford acts as an informal hub for many new companies that are redefining how things are done. Thank God our mascot has been changed from the Indian to the Cardinal.

Last year was a real struggle without Maggie and although we talked every night it wasn’t the same as being with her all the time. I’m going to tell you something I haven’t told anyone else. I was studying on a quiet Saturday night in January when one of the cute gals who lives in my building came over to invite me to their party and also to see if I had any tequila. Next thing I know we’re chugging down shots in my apartment. After I lit up a joint things got a little heated and we were all over each other on my small couch. Luckily I came to my senses when she started to unbutton my jeans. It took ten minutes to convince her she was super hot and I only stopped because I have a wonderful girlfriend I couldn’t cheat on. Ironically, moments like that convince me even more how much I love Maggie. I can’t help but question my judgment and how I could let things go that far. For obvious reasons I didn’t make the party.