Sunrise in the Middle East

I chose an adventurous camping trip to Wadi Asimah over a New Year’s Eve party in Dubai, which went on to become my awakening, of some sorts, if I may say. We left on the 31st afternoon of a cold December day in 2013, accompanied by a lovely sunset, which kept fading away into the darkness as we drove through the city of Sharjah and a few mildly inhabited rural suburbs along the highway.
The place was bestowed with dry metamorphic mountains on both sides; a dusty and rugged off-road trail led us to canyon-like plateaus rising to altitudes as high as 10-storey buildings. Our Dodge SUV had a 4x4 system and sailed smoothly over tough terrain. The thick tires slipping at some places and the sound of the small rocks and stones rolling aside in a peripatetic manner, others hitting the under body of the car. This was the first time I had been on a camping sojourn with new people.
We set up our tents early and flared up a bonfire. As the evening set in, we became one with the surroundings, drinks were being poured, songs were being sung accompanied by surreal and mellow sounds coming from an old acoustic guitar we had in our midst. The aroma of the marinated chicken barbequed over the bonfire, bread loafs being sliced open and the beautiful landscape surrounding us made us forget our worries, although for a little while. I now realized why people camp this far away, all they wanted was little time with their alter egos, which lay dormant in a world run by these working class heroes. The evening became host to conversations on friendship, love, life, childhood and the materialistic worldly possessions that chain us to this world. Seemed like we all enjoyed being away from a meeting, a date, work, responsibilities & whatever it was, that we were running from.
Slowly the conversations died away, everyone went off to sleep in their tents. But my eyes lingered, my ears focused on the wood burn and rustle. Soon, the fire had died off, I still lay wide awake. The Sun rose, slowly lurking from the East, kissing this gigantic range of mountains with rays of warmth. An array of yellow rays spread through the region, breathing life into every picturesque setting around me. I realized what I had missed all these years, sleeping in late. The beauty of everything that surrounds us fills the heart with a desire to wander beyond our brick walls and comfort zones. I don’t know why I had stayed awake all night, maybe the morning had conspired to stage such an awakening for me.