One August, in the Flyrun Desert, Amir woke up while the sun was creeping up along the horizon. It was a hot day, and Amir had a long way to travel. He was going to the holy city of Quation. Amir had planned to make this pilgrimage a long time ago. Several months ago, Amir had a dream about his trip to Quation. In his dream, God told him that once he got to Quation, he would receive a very important gift. Amir woke up with a huge grin on his face. He really wanted to see what this gift would be. Amir now traveled along the sands of the desert, hot, and sweaty...and very thirsty. He only had a little bit of water left and he didn�t want to waste it until he was even thirstier than he was now. Behind Amir was his camel, Ismuth. Ismuth had belonged to Amir since he was two years old. Ismuth was now eight years old and he was very faithful. He�d carry Amir anywhere. Ismuth had almost died one time. It was when Amir�s crazy older brother, Fou, had stolen him. Amir owed Fou a gambling debt and couldn�t pay it off. So, Fou stole Amir�s most prized possession, his camel, Ismuth. Ismuth almost died, because Fou neglected him. Amir stole Ismuth back and Fou never even noticed. Not yet at least. The winds whipped at Amir�s red robe. The scent of rotten flesh filled the air. He could see to his left the carcass of a camel and vultures were eating it. He turned away and continued on his journey. In the distance he saw the city of Quation. Some of it lay in ruins. And among the rubble he could see many men gathered around, praying. At first he thought it was a mirage, until he could smell humans. He pulled Ismuth to the ground and got on him. He wanted to ride the rest of the way, because he was very tired. Ismuth let Amir on and they rode quickly to Quation.
When they finally made it to the holy city, a huge breeze came. Amir hopped off of Ismuth and pulled him along. Many men were kneeling in the city, praying to the mighty God above. Would they all be getting gifts? Amir thought.
Amir pulled out a small gray rug that was tied to the camel saddle. He found a place over by some of the ruins and placed the rug down. Upon his knees he fell, with Ismuth behind him standing there drooling. Amir looked up into the sky and began to pray aloud. Mighty Lord, I have come today because you have asked me here. In a dream many months ago, you told me to come here to Quation, where I would pray and receive a gift. Lord, what is this gift and where do I go to receive it? I thank you Lord for choosing me and I will do my best to serve you. Yours, Amir. Amir finally got up and rolled his rug, placing it on the side of the camel saddle once more. He sighed loudly. He and Ismuth walked though the wounded city. Amir looked around at the men who prayed. What is my gift? He thought. Finally, after waiting for what felt like an eternity, Amir had a vision. In his vision he could see a beautiful dark woman whose name appeared to be Azreal. In her arms was a little boy. Amir felt that he looked similar to himself when he was a child. The boy�s name appeared to be Phillipy. The Lord spoke in his vision, saying My son, you have served me and have done your will. You have been forgiven for gambling. You may have thought your gift would be superficial, but my son, your gift is worth more than riches or gold. Your gift is a wife, and a son...and one last mission. This mission is to take the life I have given you and use it to preach all the knowledge about who I AM. Go now, my child, to Bixby, where you shall meet the love of your life and she will bear you a son, Phillipy. Go now... Without hesitating, Amir got on Ismuth, and they rode away from Quation, to Bixby. Amir thanked God for this most wonderful gift and promised Him to fulfill the duty of being a minister. From there he went...and he didn�t let the Lord down.
� January 18, 2000