Hoping for a more neighborly Laguna

LAGUNA LIFE

The new year is now only hours away, and by the time this paper

hits the doorsteps of Laguna, it will be 2003, as the hand of time

continues to tick away.

Isn’t it amazing how fast the years fly by, quicker every year?

And each year, I grow more and more thankful for the little things I

have and see.

Living in this town for the last 30 years, I have experienced and

seen many changes take place. Some that I like, and numerous changes

that I hate. From the ashes of the dreadful ’93 fire came a new and

more prominent Laguna that in future years would endure even more

heartache in the floods that followed. I have seen the chain stores

ride into town and squash the smaller competition. Say hello to the

Starbucks, Banana Republic and Wild Oats, and goodbye to places like

Acords.

Funny? No, it’s sad, really, how people aren’t so neighborly

anymore in saying hello or waving to one another -- or waving back

for that matter. I mean, how can you, when one hand is on the

steering wheel of your new hummer and the other one on your cell

phone? I mean, my goodness, my neighbors hung a “Private Property, No

Trespassing” sign on the basketball hoop across the street from where

I live and, of all things, they’re renters. (“Sorry kids, if you

shoot baskets, I will have to call the fuzz on you and have you

arrested.”) Where do people like this come from? Never mind that my

landlord actually owns this particular hoop and has permission from

the owner of the house to have it there. Whatever happened to the

“good neighbor?” Has it been replaced by the color of green? By

social status? Fancy cars and big homes? Or are people just not as

friendly? Maybe that’s the real question?

However, through all of the changes, there is one man who

signifies everything that is wonderful about this town: his smile,

his one of a kind spirit, his laughter. Every time I see him walking,

I honk, and he just starts waving with the enthusiasm of a man who

has great passion not only for life itself, but for the people and

the town that he lives in. You cannot miss the love that he holds

within because it is in the glow that surrounds him. Skipper, you

embody the spirit of Laguna. I don’t know you, but I see you

everyday, and everyday you show me that you’re a wonderful person. In

the end, the only thing that really matters is the type of person

that you are. Don’t ever change.

Peace.

* JAMES PRIBRAM is a Laguna Beach resident, professional surfer

and co-founder of “They Will Surf Again,” a nonprofit foundation

assisting people with spinal cord injuries.