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NOTE: 2 Pages of Photos
I have lived on a Saudi employee compound for the past five weeks.
I have had the fortune of being able to visit a variety of “remote” compounds up and down the eastern coast of the Arabian gulf, from just south of the Kuwait border, to within 100 KM of the “ Empty Quarter”—that portion of Saudi made famous in David Lean’s “Lawrence of Arabia”.
Compounds are Corporate-developed Oasis in the middle of dry and barren land within close proximity to petroleum and gas production sites.
No expenses are spared to make these compounds comfortable and inviting for the employees and contractors who make this their home-away from home.
The typical compound is luxuriously landscaped-and has all the amenities of a nice resort—Pool, workout room with the most modern equipment, sauna /steam.
They have game rooms, pool, table-tennis, and a library. Most have a soccer (football) field which would be used every single night.
The dining hall is free in the remote camps. Just show your ID badge.
There are signs however- “eat what you take, take only what you will eat.”
The life of an
oil-worker on a remote site is difficult, especially in a culture that places a high premium on family.
Seven 12 hr days on, and three off, followed by a stint of seven night shifts, and four off.
I have had several conversations with Saudi men who have several wives.
One man had twelve children with two wives.
When I asked if this complicates his life (or something to that effect), he said he keeps it simple-they live in different homes, and have separate lives.
He felt the Saudi way of being faithful to two wives was superior to the American and European way of having a wife and a secret lover. I could not argue that point.
These compounds have men only—and the men are flown home from the compounds every seven days and then back to work again.
While this is admittedly hard on these family men, they readily admit that the money makes it worth it- most able to retire comfortably by the age of fifty.
In the workshops I have conducted, the average tenure for the group was always above twenty -five years.
In one remote site,
it was my pleasant fortune to stay on a night a huge Arabic feast was being hosted by the company.
There were nine large tables surrounding a vast pool, each table full of fine Arabic cuisine.
The desserts were unbelievably delicious.
I witnessed a close camaraderie between these men—eating the traditional “Kapsa” meal on the floor in a circle each day—the act of being knee to knee and shoulder to shoulder with my Saudi friends as I ate with my hands gave me a feeling of earthy intimacy with these men.
I am coming to the close of my visit to the “Kingdom”, and while I am o-so-ready to be home with my wife (Happy Anniversary, Susan!!) and Abby, and all my family, friends and co-workers, I am finding it hard to say goodbye to this country -to the people I have met-to their graciousness and generosity, to their witness to me of a commitment to a faith and way of life that has withstood the pressures of change the modern world exerts on them.
And even to the dry desert outside the city. And yes, the camels and Bedouins.
It has been a
privilege sharing this journey with you, my family and friends- getting to tell you about it has helped me to pay close attention, to not just look, but to try to see, and to respond, and to allow this experience to shape itself in me.
As Thomas Merton wrote: “Everything depends on the quality of our acts and our experiences.
A multitude of experiences only half-lived exhausts and depletes our being.”
As for learning from the Saudi culture - the commitment to prayer, the clothing, the ceremonials, the familial roles and customs, Merton also says, “The more I am able to affirm others, to say “Yes” to them in myself, the more I can discover myself in them, and them in myself, the more real I become. I will be a better person, not if I know how to refute everything different than myself, but if I can see what truth to affirm in every person, and still go further.”
So I thank you who have followed along with me, and have prayed for me along the way. I hope by doing so you have been blessed as I have been in taking you along
with me.
God Bless,
Bob
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Jim Osterman
non-member comment
Coming home......
Godspeed Mr. Toohey