The Salton Sea - Taking detours..

Sometimes misfortunes in life make one forget who one is. You try to be what others want you to be. Finally, after years of feeling lost, beginning to find myself, an adventurer at heart, I did what I used to do years ago. On my drive alone to LA. I took off impromptu towards Mecca, fascinated by the story of The Salton Sea. I firmly believe that everyone needs to take detours. its where the wonders of life exist. I drove on an isolated road and didn’t see a soul or car for nearly twenty minutes. The hills were like skeletons of life, nothing but corrosion and fissures.. a psychos heaven, crevices where bodies could be easily hidden. Fascinated, I stopped to take pictures and then my car got stuck in quicksand. I couldn't help but get amused - the one sinkhole probably along miles of isolated hard packed shoulders. But that's how life has always been for me and I'm grateful for that! About 15 minutes in, I hear a car driving up. The first engine I hear besides my car's in 45 minutes. It's a SHINY truck with four men in it. I wave to them. They drive right past. A couple of minutes later, they come back. They help me get my car out by digging, heaving, pushing, leaning, sweating for at least 30 minutes. They were two young men, and two older men, their fathers. No words, just grunts of straining themselves to their limits, and gestures to tell me what to do till the car was free of the quicksand. I asked them their names and they get scared till I tell them mine. “I am Samie." Then they offered me their names. They were probably illegal immigrants who worked on the farms around the sea, they refused to take money from me and left. Not once did I suspect their motive or feel in danger in the middle of an isolated stretch of nowhere. I have always believed the best in people. I will continue to do so. As besides an unfortunate encounter, all people I have met have reaffirmed that belief. And that is why I waved the strangers down without concern. One day my foolish naiveté and belief will probably get me in trouble, but what more can one ask of life than to have faith in goodness preserved till the very end? No matter how it ends. Love, Samie