The Confusion of Time

The sand under their feet counts approximately two trillion six hundred twenty-eight million minutes of history, though in no particular order, and for all of it they have changed little.

Of the Bedou it is the Hunsit who provide the model for all the rest. No one sits a camel with more style, wields a sword with more dash, or recites the the words of the Prophet with greater feeling. It is no wonder that the great caliphates of this region have for centuries paid handsomely for their services as royal escorts, palace guards, and official decorations.

Yusef of Mazrah, who might have spent a lifetime herding sheep from place to place, instead retired with a royal pension at the rank of sergeant after thirty years of service as point man and kettle drummer in the 16th Royal Camel Corps. As he had enlisted at the age of fifteen he was still relatively young and had little desire to return to the bosom of his family. Reports say that he now lives in Rome, Italy, where he plays drums with a jazz ensemble that includes a Turk, two Englishmen, and a Spaniard.


Title | Contents | Index | Author
Bedou || The Confusion of Time | Oasis | Market at Basha | Veils
Intangible Frontlist