Have you ever thought about what makes up your personality? I have to believe that it is the sum total of the experiences you have had to date in your lifetime. These, of course, are filtered through your senses, and tempered by your own reaction to them.

Tonight I am at peace with the world. We are camped out here in the Sonoran Desert near Quartzsite Arizona. There are thousands of people dispersed over miles and miles of the desert but each has carved out their own place. We are camped near friends, some old friends that we met two or three years ago. Some are new friends we met only a few hours ago. I sang songs for over an hour around the campfire, and then Judy and I walked away from the camp hand in hand into the quiet desert in the twilight of the sunset.

Later, just before the moon came up we walked back to the coach from the dying embers of the group campfire. We looked up into the inky darkness and stared at the beauty of the Milky Way spread out from horizon to horizon. We could make out the golden color of Mars and Orion was spread eagle over our heads. Then we watched the loom of the impending moonrise began to take form over the hills to our east. First a little sliver of gold; now a half round globe with a pinnacle of a mountain top framed in the glow; finally a great golden orb sliding diagonally across the jagged hilltops and climbing toward a bank of high Sirius clouds near the horizon.

Tonight I am a richer person for the experiences of the day. My friends I implore you to seek out beauty wherever you are. Find a calm moment to observe what is around you. And seek out experiences that will enrich your personality.

With love from Gary and Judy