Sandy Clause Visits Sahara

I was cleaning out some stuff and found this article below I ahd written during my days at Kilgore College.


Sandy Claus Visits Sahara
Kilgore College Flare Christmas Edition 1981
By Mike Midkiff

Christmas. A word that brings smiles to faces. The celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ and a visit by Santa Claus. Childhood memories of one Christmas bring back especially good memories for me.
The Christmas of 1969 always lays heavy on my mind. There was no “Jack Frost” nipping at my nose, no “chestnuts roasting on a open fire,” and no white Christmas.
The reason? I spent that Christmas on the Sahara Desert located at the northern end of Africa.
Why spend Christmas half-way around the world from relatives and friends? My father was transferred to Africa by the oil service company he worked for, Halliburton.
My family and I lived in Tripoli, Libya, from June 1969, to June 1971. During this time, we were separated from television, McDonald’s, and the Dallas Cowboys. And only 400 or so American families lived in Tripoli working for various oil and service companies.
With all the political problems in Libya today, headed by Colonel Moammar Khadafy, very few, if any American live in Tripoli now. How well I remembered the days when Khadafay took reign on September 1, 1969. It sure was interesting watching tanks and other armored vehicles travel down the street in front of our house.
My father’s job meant spending 14 days on and seven days off. He commuted via airplane from Tripoli to Fox Trot Three, one of several Halliburton camps, located in the Sahara. Fox Trot Three could be compared to a small community. Trailer houses were living quarters for the men. The trailers surrounded the mess and recreation halls. Various warehouses and cement storage bins made up the rest of the camp.
The Christmas of 1969 was spent in the Sahara because Dad was working. All other Halliburton wives and kids who had husbands and fathers in the Sahara got to spend Christmas in the Sahara too.
We flew into Fox Trot Three on a DC-9 landing just outside the camp on a sandy runway. What a sight to see upon our arrival! No pine trees, grass or paved streets- just sand, sand, and more sand.
Stepping off the plane, the only thing I recall is that it was warm. Temperatures in the Sahara, during the winter, ranges from 65-75 degrees during the day and near freezing at night.
After getting settled in, Dad took us sight-seeing. Sight-seeing! All one could see was sand. But believe it or not, there were a few points of interest.
Dad took us, in a four-wheel drive Toyota truck with big tires, to visit three places: a drilling rig, a Mobil Oil camp, and a black top road that ended in the middle of no-where- I mean, no-where.
The Sahara did not have paved roads except for a little strip that went through a small village built around an oasis. The road was about a mile and half long running through a village that the Halliburton hands simply called “Oasis.”
The village had houses built from limestone blocks with plenty of palm trees. The road was built with the idea of eventually stretching from one end of the desert to the other end. The project ran out of money and ended after 1 ½ miles.
Sure, Christmas in the Sahara was not like spending it in the United States. No trip to Grandma’s house for us. Still celebrating Christmas with new friends was great.
Friends were not from Palestine, Texas, but from Louisiana, Mississippi, Canada and even Libyans who prepared Christmas dinner for us. It did not matter that we were all away from home in a foreign land because Christmas is celebrated in the heart- not at a particular place.
The Christmas of 1969 will always be a happy and meaningful memory for my family and me.

Blogging Is Not High On the List

Even though it has been a while since the last blog life has been a blast.

During the end of May I traveled with the East Texas Baptist University Lady Tigers Softball team to the NCAA Division III Softball championship held in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. I have never been to Wisconsin. I brought my two sons "cheeseheads" back from Eau Claire. It was different seeing all the Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings stuff in the sports stores.

Wisconsin was very enjoyable because ETBU won it all. Yes, they are the national champions in NCAA Division III softball. I have watched many celebrations on TV when teams have won it all and always said to myself, "That is neat."

You know what, being at a national championship tournament and your team wins, is AWESOME, AWESOME, AWESOME. It beats watching a team win on national television. What an experience for me. In my career I have always wanted to cover a team that won it all. God is good to this old boy who used to type out his own newspaper as kid with make believe stories about teams winning championships.

When I got back from Wisconsin, my wife was named Secondary Teacher of the Year for the Marshall Independent School District. I am so proud of her but it does not surprise me. I see the extra hours she spends to get ready to teach and the extra time she gives after school to her students to help them succeed. She was recognized by the MISD school board just a few weeks back and the Marshall News Messenger did a story on her.

Father's Day was great. I am so blessed to be called Dad by Alison, Andrew and Ashton. Marianne and Alison made one of my favorite desserts, bannana pudding.

Life is a blast when you know that the Lord Jesus Christ is guiding it.