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May 2007 Newsletter
Howdy folks, the month of May has come and gone; thus comes another Texas Camel Corps update.
On Friday, May 11th, my 7-year old son Pecos and I took camels Richard and Gobi to Acton Middle School, near Granbury, Texas for a day of education programs. Pecos got to play "hooky" for the day, which he loved. The event was a Texas History fair and other representations included Buffalo Soldiers, frontier chuck wagon cooks, pioneer women and a trick roper with his horse. The organizer for the day was Peg Hainey, owner of a company called Many Hats that places events like this on school campuses throughout the year.
In Texas, kids in 4th and 7th grades study our state’s history for the entire academic year, so Pecos and I got to visit with over 500 pre-teens. Most of the presenters were engaging and I heard lots of positive comments from the teachers and students alike. Gobi and Richard took it all in stride and we were back on the farm before sundown.
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From May 14-23 I was in Arizona, working for VisionQuest (www.vq.com). I split my time between the boys’ and girls’ programs, but most of the camel work was with a handful of young men. There had been a number of new intakes to the program since I was last there in April, so I had quite a bit of "catching up" to do, getting a number of new youths confident and competent around the camels. All did quite well and we were able to get in a few day-rides with different groups.
In this herd of a dozen camels we’ve got a couple of young ‘uns: Jericho and Marianne. Marianne’s been riding for a while, but I’ve only recently started putting time into her half-brother. A young man in the program named Aaron has been helping me train Jericho who’s more or less only ridden around the barn, but we were able to take him out on a longer ride with a group of more experienced camels and he did great! It was so good for me, Jericho AND Aaron. Those are the days when I love what I do for VisionQuest. What a rewarding time that is, when a youth and a young camel see the light come on. Aaron’s been a big helper with Marianne and I told him, "Long after you’ve left this program, other youth will be able to ride these younger camels because of the time you’ve spent with them." I added, "It’s a bit like a legacy." I’m so proud of Aaron (and the camels).
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May’s always the rainiest month in Central Texas, where our farm is, and this year, in stark contrast to 2006, we’re way over our average rainfall. The good news is there’s hay this year, which we’ve not had since last summer. The bad news is, when it rains it pours. The ground hasn’t dried yet and that makes it difficult for the farmers to cut, rake and bale the much-needed fodder for livestock. The continuing rains have actually resulted in just under a dozen drowning/flood-related deaths in the area along with another two from lightning strikes in the past month, so obviously these downpours have been mixed blessings.
Of much less concern is the muddy effects on my camels. Recently, a post was made on a Yahoo groups page for fiber enthusiasts about my annually shedding camels and my generosity (someone else’s words, not mine!) in giving the fiber away. Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full. Actually more like nine boxes. Two weeks ago I received a ton of requests for fiber and am happy to fill the orders. My policy is, I brush the camels, collect the hair, send it (if the interested party will reimburse me for shipping) and they clean the hair and do with it what they like. I’ve had folks in the past send me items made from my camels’ pile. Socks, rope and even a wall hanging with Gobi’s image, shadow and a Mongolian yurt!
I’ve always groomed the camels each spring/summer when they start shedding (you don’t have to shear them) and from time to time I get inquiries about their fiber. It’s truly my pleasure. Bactrians (the two-humped species), originally from a colder climate, tend to shed earlier, generally from April through June, while the Arabians don’t even start shedding until right about now. This means I’ve got six camels that look like they’re in various stages of mange for almost three months! Having lived among Bedouin in Egypt/Sinai off and on over the last six years, though, I value even more now the fiber output and the fact that someone can get some use out of it.
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June’s shaping up to be a pretty busy month.
On the 9th, I head about 25 miles away for a program in Whitney, Texas and from the 11th-20th I'll be back in Arizona working for VisionQuest.
On the 23rd, Jim Hale of the American Camel Company and I will combine to be a part of the Camp Verde General Store’s 150th anniversary celebration, in the Hill Country of Texas. This combination post office/gift shop/restaurant stands where an establishment once served the soldiers at historic Camp Verde, home of the old US Army Camel Corps of the 1850’s and 1860’s. Some of you may recall that Jim and I had some of our camels on the Sesquicentennial Camel Drive last year. The Camp Verde General Store is where the Drive ended up, so it’s a homecoming of sorts. Jim and I are looking forward to seeing other Drive alums Gil T. Hernandez, Frank Gonzales and Ernest Geigenmiller. Hope to see you there!
On the 26th, I’ll be headed to Ft. Worth, Texas with a couple of camels for a morning of programs at McKinney church. These types of programs are always fun because I get to share the Biblical connections of camels. Did you know that the camel is mentioned fifty-seven times in the Old Testament and six times in the New? I’m such a geek. I also get to share stories of my own experiences in the Sinai, famous, of course, for Moses’ 40-year wanderings. If you’re in the DFW area, you’re welcome to come over, I’d love to see you.
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Here’s something I’m really excited about (and it has nothing to do with camels)!
On June 30th a photographer named Steve McCurry will be speaking in nearby Waco, Texas at McLennan Community College at 1 p.m. If you don’t know his name, you know his work. McCurry took a famous shot of an Afghan refugee which, inarguably, came to be the most famous picture in the history of National Geographic magazine. The "Afghan Girl", as the subject of the picture has come to be known, first appeared on the cover of NG in June of 1985, during the Soviet invasion in the lands once known as Bactria.
For years neither NG nor the photographer knew the identity of the girl; she was simply one of a number of refugees whose image McCurry had shot back in ’84, while in Pakistan on assignment. With the fall of the Taliban, however, McCurry returned to the area in January, 2002 expressly to find her. McCurry and the NG-sponsored mission found Sharbat Gula (they’d now gotten the subject’s name), ethnically a Pashtun, in the mountains of Tora Bora, back home across the "border" in Afghanistan.
Scientists and ophthalmologists examined the iris patterns of the woman’s eyes and determined that this was, in fact, the girl from the picture, now grown up. 28, 29, 30? She didn’t know her age, but remembered the day McCurry took her picture. It was the last time her image had been captured, she told the photographer.
The image, along with a greater body of McCurry’s work, will be a part of an exhibit at Waco’s Art Center (www.artcenterwaco.org) from June 30-March 30, 2008. The lecture and book signing are from 1-2:30 p.m. in MCC’s nearby Conference Center and admission is $5. Admission to the Art Center is $2 for adults, $1 for children and the exhibit will be open that day from 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
If any of you are interested in coming to this, you’re more than welcome to stop by the farm afterward to visit the camels (and my family). It’s about a 25-minute drive from MCC to our farm, so feel free to stop by.
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Finally, don’t forget I’ve got trips in Egypt/Sinai planned for January, 2008. I’ve heard from a few folks who’d like to join up and I only need 4 to make a trip run. All guests must be confirmed by November 1 and, while it may seem a bit early to be planning, we’ll need to start working to coordinate dates that work for everyone. Trip cost is $1950 for this 10-day itinerary (air not included) and all tips, transfers, lodging and most meals are covered. These trips really do benefit the families among whom we stay while in Egypt/Sinai and past guests agree: the most incredible part of these trips is the time spent with locals. Oh yeah, you’ll get to see the Pyramids, too, but they can hardly compare!
Thanks as always for your interest in my camels.
Doug
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