YOU will all agree with me that cold is very harsh in the desert at night; temperatures can drop to below zero. This is the background to my comments so hold the cold weather in your mind. Last week, I was invited to a posh wedding party in Riyadh and as any woman in the country, I replaced my long black abaya with an expensive full length black mink coat — which I bought for a hefty price in 1990 in Washington DC. To me, Fur coats are like expensive delicate jewelry that one adores, maintains and keeps safe. I have a collection of six, including mink, fox and chinchilla. Never in my wildest dream have I considered not buying a fur coat; I would as soon buy a plastic bag instead of a gator or snake one.

Anyway. I was very proud — and very warm in the cold night of Riyadh — and walked clad in my mink. Suddenly I noted a friend looking at me as if I was wearing a bikini. When I looked at her, she said how cruel I was to wear the skin of an animal. We got into a heated discussion with each one elaborating her point of view.

To me, it is obvious; I will not wear the fur of some endangered species and at the same time, I don’t want synthetic fur on my skin. After all, we eat cows, sheep and even camels. Why not abstain from them? What if the fur comes from an animal that has been raised in captivity like a sheep? We all wear wool without thinking much about where it comes from.

*****

Dear Nadia

Last week I was intrigued by your story of the guy who went to an island whose inhabitants were as civilized as humans, or more civilized than humans and had originally been animals. I was reminded of the 1970 film, “Planet of the Apes” with a few differences. I wanted to put an end to the story as I see it — the civilized animals help the hero build a raft and he leaves and then returns with his family and they all live happily ever after on the island. How about that?

— Joshua, Dubai

Dear Joshua

Sadly, you are a great dreamer and believer in the human race as I thought my readers would be ... but if you look around you, and through the eyes of a historian, you will not have so much faith.

The story goes that the man returns home to his family after swearing full secrecy to the civilized inhabitants — but like any human being he could not keep a secret for a long time. He told his wife who was greedy and convinced him that since no one knew about the island but him, selling the secret to the highest bidder or investor would make them rich beyond their dreams.

She nagged him until he agreed and the secret was sold. The buyer turned the island into an amusement park and in the end, because of forces fighting for profits, the island was destroyed and its inhabitants lost forever. This is, I am sorry to say, the real ending.