The Desert has some of the most beautiful sunsets. Very different than the sun setting over the fast expanses of ranch land in the Texas hill country where I’m from. Different from the lazy dropping of the sun into the ocean or behind snow capped mountains where I vacation. And even different from the setting sun over the vast corn and soybean fields of the mid-west where my wife’s family is from. It is beautiful, just a different kind of beautiful.

I’m learning a lot about the desert. There is beauty and at the same time without water or appropriate supplies this place could be devastating. Don’t misunderstand what I’m saying I’m not without water or supplies. The military does an excellent job keeping cases and cases of water around all the time and the chow at the dining facilities is excellent.

Additionally, I’ve never been refused when asking for a cold water or cold Gatorade out of someone’s chilled stash, and in many cases I’ve been offered a drink outright just showing up in their office with the heat of the day still on my brow. There seems to be an unspoken and understood hospitality in the Desert.

Being in such an ancient land of history I think back to some of the stories I heard growing up about hospitality to strangers and guests who come to your house or city. In this environment I would think, without hospitality you might be sending a stranger to a dangerous place of dehydration or even death especially in ancient times.

I get a kick in my own mind that I’m really quite close geographically to the ancient Bible lands. I remember seeing a brochure at an antique store years ago showing a “Tour of the Holy Land”, and you probably already guessed one of the places on the trip was right near where I am in Iraq. Many ancient places, stories and traditions are in this country, still unavailable for the masses of the people to consume through tourism. I guess they will lay waiting for guests until peace finally comes to stay.