Dear Family and Friends,

It has been nearly a year since I last posted to this blog. Not because I died in Saudi Arabia but because writing here on this blog, for me, takes a certain mastery of will, the ability to both be in the moment and distant from the moment; writing here requires interest in life beyond the slog – vanquished luxuries, for me, by last December.

Existing, as we foreigners of spirit do in Al Jouf, is difficult. Metaphorically, it seems that our feelings run the same gamut as a jungle war movie: good soldiers begin their march through the jungle, full of vigor and purpose, they endure a difficulty here or there with fair to middling equanimity until they end up trying to march through knee-deep mud for uncountable, unending miles. The will to live, the will to win endures but spirit is tainted, if not drained away. Soldiers end away from their battles altered in mind but of stronger will. As did I.


I arrived in Al-Jouf in October of 2009. I slogged through the remainder of the school year until June 2010, broken only by glorious breaks in Jordan and Istanbul. July and August were comprised of summer school teaching and a few weeks of September permitted me a flying visit back to the States. I have returned to Jouf for one more teaching year – and then I will finish with Saudi Arabia.

You might wonder how I could – let alone would – return. Of my options and with our economy still in the doldrums, returning made the most sense. I have already forged a path. I believe that I can walk it again. And if I cannot walk it, I can and will leave. Full-stop.

And, happily, although I must remain hyper-vigilant, the will to write has returned. Insh’Allah – God willing – you will have lots (but not too much!) to read about in the coming months.

Love,

Laura

A few pictures from my last year in Saudi Arabia...

A wise friend once told me that, "Asian cities are beautiful at night, not during the day." Proving his words: Riyadh at night.

Our dusty, semi-picturesque, mostly garbage inhabited commute.

A date tree with nearly ripe dates.

Once the ever-popular Saudi Arabia dates are picked, this is how the dates are usually served.

On one of our daily walks, we discovered a camel farm. It is very hard to be cynical amongst camels!

The morning sky and road near our compound.

Kabsah: THE Saudi Arabian traditional dish. And what seems like the only food that our students ever eat!

One of the oldest mosques in the world... in a city not far from where we live.

Inside the Mosque of Omar (one of the oldest mosques in the world).

Our New Year's bonfire.

ATVing: a great way to re-taste freedom and to explore the desert.

A lovely aspect of living in Jouf has been to practice a few of my passions such as cooking and baking.

A lovely aspect of living in Jouf has been developing new passions: coaxing plants from seed into fruit and spending time lounging or playing pool volleyball.

A much needed moment of beauty at a public art sculpture of a traditional Arab coffee pot, not too far from our compound.

An Easter prankster peep - dressed in an abaya and ready for work!