Today we got the day off from school because of a terrible sand storm that has made its way into Riyadh. Last Saturday we got the day off in honor of a kind and generous King. Next week I'm hoping for some heavy rain (fingers crossed!).

I spent my morning reading some much need Pablo Neruda while drinking coffee and nibbling on some biscuits. Sigh. Why did I want to work again? Anyway...Neruda, a Chilean poet, always wrote in green ink because he believed that it was a color of hope. Today I'm typing with shades of green because I'm filled with all sorts of hope these days.

we men,

touch the water,

struggling

and hoping,

we touch the sea,

hoping.

And the waves tell the firm coast,

"Everything will be fulfilled."

-excerpt from "Ode to Hope" by Pablo Neruda.