inside. The diesel engine was idling, and he could feel the cool air created by the air-conditioning blowing from within. The interior of the front section of the vehicle was sheathed in stainless steel and resembled a commercial kitchen, while the entire rear portion held refrigerated walk-ins for perishable foods and living accommodations for the chefs.
“What in the world is this, Lev?”
“I bought it from a rich Texas oil man. It’s a combination mobile kitchen and living quarters. His company was doing some exploration out in the desert, and he sold it to me after they were through. Those oil men like their comforts out in the field. You can prepare enough food for an army with this thing.”
“Wow!”
Leo turned to see John standing behind him staring at the motor home. “You really love that word.”
John laughed. “Well, it gets my point across.”
Lev walked over to one of the trucks and looked inside. After conferring with one of his staff, he returned to join Leo and John. “Everything is loaded in the trucks. You have everything you’ll need until the rest of the expedition arrives. Better get going so you can set up camp before dark.”
Alon was sitting in the driver’s seat of the Land Rover and watched as Leo approached and climbed into the passenger seat beside him. Ariella and John glanced at each other shyly before climbing into the backseat next to each other. Behind them, the engines of the trucks roared to life, and the convoy began to slowly pull away from the villa under a cloudless sky onto the palm-lined highway.
Ariella seemed distracted as she watched the scenery passing by outside her window. “Have you ever been to Jerusalem?”
John felt his heart skip a beat. “Uh, no, I haven’t.”
She turned and stared at him with her large brown eyes. “It would be a shame to come to Israel and not see Jerusalem. When we get back from the desert, we’ll make some time, and I’ll show you around the city, especially the old parts.”
John couldn’t believe his ears. Was he dreaming? She wanted to show him the city. “Yeah, I mean, great. I’d love to spend some time there.”
Ariella gave him a coy smile and glanced back out the window while they drove on in awkward silence. The highway departed the sandy coastal grassland, and soon they began to see fields of crops on the fertile Mediterranean plain. Alon’s eyes studied every car that passed as the others looked silently out their windows and thought about what they might find in the desert.
The vehicles turned east onto the new six-lane Highway 1 and headed for Jerusalem, drawing curious stares from people in other vehicles. In the subtropical climate, fruit and vegetables grew in abundance, including citrus, avocados, kiwis, guavas, bananas, and mangos. All this bounty came from the region they were passing through. They saw fields of wheat, sorghum, corn, tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers, along with acres of flowers and vineyards lined with rows of grapevines stretching for miles.
“I never imagined it was so beautiful in Israel,” John said, watching the parade of color pass by their windows. “Have there always been farms like this here?”
Ariella waved her hand in the direction of the fields. “They’ve been doing this since 1909. This country is dotted with two kinds of unique cooperative agricultural settlements. One is called a
John turned his attention from the scenery back to Ariella. “I didn’t realize the villa was a kibbutz.”
“It’s not one in the traditional sense. My father owns the villa and the houses and land surrounding it. He lets people, mostly students, live there free of charge in exchange for providing security, growing the community’s food, and taking care of the villa. Because we raise almost everything we eat, the food is free. We also own several vehicles that are available for everyone in the community. They use them mostly for going to school or shopping or just a night out on the town. Some of my father’s students are now professors and still choose to live there. We’re like a big family that watches out for one another.”
“Sounds pretty idyllic to me,” John said.
Ariella tossed her long brown hair back over her shoulders. “It is to me. I never want to leave.”
“I’ve lived there for the past five years and feel the same way,” Alon said, keeping his eyes on the road. “Lev’s promised me a house of my own when I get married.”
Ariella giggled. “And when will that be?”
They could see the back of Alon’s neck turning red. “As soon as Nava decides she’s had enough of flying.”
“Who’s Nava?” John asked.
Ariella winked. “Alon’s fiancee. She flies a helicopter in the Israeli army. You’ll meet her soon.”
Rounding a corner at the top of a hill, Jerusalem came into view sprawled out before them. The golden Dome of the Rock reflected the sun in the distance while the vehicles crawled through the city in the midmorning traffic. John felt the electricity of discovery. He knew he had come to a special place on earth and wanted to explore all of it. In addition to the beauty he had encountered, the religious significance was overwhelming.
John rolled down his window and stuck his head out to breathe in the aroma of the city. “Can you believe we’re actually driving through Jerusalem? Wow!”
Leo smiled to himself.
“What is the name of the desert we’re going to?” John asked.
Alon turned in his seat as they came to a stop at a red light. “It’s called the Negev Desert. It’s a barren wasteland that no one except for nomadic tribes has inhabited since God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.”
“I remember that from my studies. It is a wasteland. The Romans hated the place, and the British hated it even more. Thank God we have an air-conditioned mobile kitchen.”
Everyone laughed and talked as they drove through one of the ever-present checkpoints in Jerusalem until soon the ancient city was behind them. They drove on for a short twenty minutes until they hit Israel’s Highway 90 that ran north and south along the west bank of the Dead Sea. Leo still found it hard to believe that the famous biblical landmark was such a short drive from Jerusalem. They turned and headed south, driving for another hour until they reached a deserted roadside park beside the salt-encrusted bank at the southern tip of the Dead Sea.
Taking advantage of the stop, Ariella grabbed her camera and everyone got out to stretch their legs. The waters of the Dead Sea were the most saline on earth. Jagged, twisted shapes of dried salt rose up from crystalline pools, forming towers that seemed more at home on another planet.
Ariella wanted a visual record of the expedition and began snapping pictures. She had stacks of photo albums at home filled with images of all of the archaeological digs she had been on since she was a little girl.
She motioned to the others to come together. “Group picture everyone.” All the staff members were used to her incessant photo ops, but they usually complied with only a few moans and groans. As the group gathered together and smiled for the camera, a small half-starved dog with matted light brown hair came limping up on the hot, briny pavement and plopped down right next to John.
Leo watched as John reached down to pet the dog. “Looks like someone has a new friend.”
“They always recognize a Franciscan, Leo. Saint Francis was the patron saint of animals.”
“Everyone knows that,” Leo said. “I love animals too. Only humans avoid me.”
“That’s because Jesuits bite.”
Ariella snapped a few more pictures and walked over to join John beside a saltwater pool. He was holding the trembling dog in his arms and trying to give him sips of bottled water. The dog was lapping it up as Ariella reached out to pet him. He turned and began to lick her hand, his brown eyes reaching into her soul.
Fire blazed in Ariella’s eyes. “How could someone leave him all alone out here?”
“I can’t imagine,” John said. “This dog wouldn’t have lasted much longer in this environment. Some people seem to lack basic compassion for other creatures. It’s like their souls are different from ours, like another species.
