Driving a truck cross-country gives a man a lot of time to think. . . . . Especially when traveling through what seems like an endless desert. That alone can stir up any long-lost memories as quick as a dust storm can kick up clouds of blinding sand. I was on my way back home to Okeechobee on a trip that started off in hell. Well, hot as hell. Sin City! Smack-dab in the middle of summer. Here I was surrounded by nothing but vast desert, where every inch of land is withered from the scorching sun, so hot that even the tumbleweeds scurry to avoid the blazing heat.

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The vast openness of the desert expanded my horizons, both literally and figuratively. Timidly, I questioned why I found myself so isolated in the first place. As I reluctantly began to step outside my comfort zone to confront this notion, a spiritual energy seemed to welcome me with open arms. And despite the desert's lifeless terrain, I intuitively sensed personal growth that would soon immerse my very soul. I would be confronted by truths that were inconceivably hard to accept, yet absolutely necessary in bringing me home, full circle. Just one problem; I feared knowing now what I didn't know then. Despite my fears, I buckled up for the bumpy ride ahead.

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