Water

When it rains in the deep desert it comes suddenly. There are warnings to be sure...you can smell the storm a long way off. The hint of the approaching downpour hangs in the air for a long time then strikes with sudden zeal. It's a myth that the desert never sees storms.

I stood on the outer perimeter of our Tactical Assembly Area and watched the ocean-like rippling of the sand.When the night sky is clear, the moon casts a bright, pale, almost ethereal light over the desert.

The light has a dreamy quality. I enjoyed standing far away from our camp...alone and staring into the desert. The night light drew me to the perimeter every evening. You see, I was but twenty-two and I still knew how to dream.

I was awake and dreaming. I dreamed I was on a different sort of adventure. I had visions of Beau Geste...of dashing legionnaires...Gunga Din...caravans. I was an explorer. I hunted for the elusive and peaceful oasis.

Out on the perimeter, under more stars than I had ever seen, I could be someone else...could be somewhere else. It was my place of refuge and escapism.

But the rains were coming.

Our activities increased...I was less and less able to visit my night place on the perimeter. On one of our final nights at the Tactical Assembly Area, before we were to head north, I managed to sneak away for just a little while.

The smell of rain was heavy in the air. A storm was fast approaching. I tried to get into my explorer world...to find my oasis. To no avail. I couldn't tune out the revving of the engines, the clanking of the treads, the yelling behind me. The rustle of the sand across my boots, blown by a cold wind, was too distracting.

All I could do was look north. Bob Dylan's voice ran continually through my head singing about a hard rain that's gonna fall.

One of the perimeter sentries, on high alert this close to our departure, stumbled across me on his patrol. He questioned me a little and decided I was just loafing. As I walked past him heading back to camp...he played his red filtered flashlight briefly over my face. He must have noticed it was slightly wet.

"Hey, man, are you OK?"

"Everything's fine. It's just raining."