Sunrise over the Southern Arizona desert. While working on a story on a Marine recon unit on a training mission, I emerged from my tent to this view.

A surreal, unique beauty marks the desert, one completely different from the Blue Ridge mountains of my childhood. Although living in the desert is not something I want to do, I can understand why it draws others.

And just as different mountain ranges offer different perspectives, so do different deserts. This desert in Arizona is far different from the deserts of Nevada or New Mexico. America’s different environments blend together in this nation. It’s a shame that the differences among its inhabitants are not as easily integrated.