Desert Secret

      More LettersFrom Paradise
           Desert Secret

He told me that he liked to hike, and there is a lot of desert to hike. He said that he would often take along some boys who also liked to hike, and explore the desert.

One time he and the boys had hiked two miles into the desert. Some of the boys had ranged on ahead. They stopped in their tracks as they saw the body of a man hanging. Moving closer they saw that the man had zipped himself into a sleeping bag, pulled the hood over his face, and stepped off a plastic bucket at the foot of the tree.

A couple of the boys trudged back to the road to call the police. The police arrived using an ATV to cross the desert.

That's all there is to it. But several questions remain. Such as "Why would he have chosen to walk two miles into the desert in order to commit suicide?" And why the use of a sleeping bag?" " Did he find the bucket, or carry it in?" And "Who was he?" The desert has long kept its secrets. And this is only one.

     Aloha
     Grant