Open Minds, Open Hearts.

Planning my visit to Dubai, I had a few must dos on my agenda. The big ones were a dhow cruise in the gulf of Oman and a desert safari (no matter how touristy I knew the latter would be). While they both delivered on their promises of wonder and beauty; fanfare and excitement, my true moment of stimulation came during our visit to the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding.

Barefoot and cross-legged on cushioned seating, sipping cardamon-infused coffee and sampling soft, sticky, sugary dates, my friend and I warmed our minds with the passionate and thoughtful words of our host, Nasif Kayed.

We do not choose where we are born, or to which parents. We do not choose the color of our skin, or the social and economic class we are raised in. He said. So why should we look on one another with scorn for those fundamentals? Why should we not seek first to understand?

While I have only brushed on a comprehension Islam, I can tell you that it is nothing (really, nothing) that I perceived it to be. Or, most likely what you perceive it to be. This is why a center for cultural understanding exists and must exist. To help us navigate the turbulent waters of misinformation and find appreciation and respect for our differences. Or, at the very least, information about them.

That's Mr. Kayed, in the center, blending into the pillars of the mosque.