The Desert

The Desert

It is difficult not to wax poetic while in God’s own Cathedral. Even waking up throughout the night because the pain from sleeping on the hard sand seems worth it if only to stare at the stars and watch the moon as it moves across the sky. The profound silence and absolute stillness surrounds you like an embrace and surely the wind is God’s own breath.

In Nuweiba when we dropped off the few people who were not able to make this part of the journey when I said “surely God can find me here” I knew that I was being called further into the wilderness. Throughout the bible Moses, Jacob, John the Baptist and Jesus himself were called INTO the wilderness – not out. Perhaps that is because in this place, in God’s own Cathedral, one is commended to go IN to ones self. There are no distractions here, no clocks, no alarms, no phones, no computers and no one asks anything of me – it is only God that greets me here even as I am surrounded by my fellow pilgrims and our Bedouin hosts. Come into the wilderness Tara, my child, my beloved, and I will meet you there.

The sun rises and begins to warm the rocks, illuminating the details not visible the night before. The wind that blows, the one that I protected myself against during the night, warms up with every passing moment. There is much to do, much to see, many more conversations to have and so the day begins with a new dawn.

We travel first up the mountain that has been our backdrop for the night. Rocks slip as your feet Passover and I am grateful for the poles that support me. At each summit a grander view of the magnificent barren landscape that lies unending before us. It is so empty and yet so full. We journey ever onward IN to the wilderness.

The oasis suddenly at the last turn, two palm trees on a mountain face. Acaba trees – only a few, but you know that there is water there. We hear about the make up of the mountain – sandstone on top of a harder rock at the foundation. Then we hear that at a certain place, water will flow if hit with a stick. Seems that we’ve heard that somewhere before. Things I’ve always understood as allegory now in this place become indisputable fact. Perhaps there is more to this book, these scriptures, than it first appears/.

Our Bedouin hosts make us tea and I visit our guide four desert excursion. He is kind and gentle as he generously answers questions about the culture, beliefs and daily life of the Bedouin. Once again we are blessed by amazing leadership.

We board the jeeps and take a harrowing ride through the desert – roads would be an overstatement. The challenge is to find shad in the mid-day sun. Again we’re in good hands. I go off by myself around the outcropping of rocks that surround us and find a quiet place. God will find me here.

Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem.