1.   Twenty years of nearly constant warfare have left northern Afghanistan a desolate place.

2.   War is waiting to happen in this desolate place, where thousands of American G.I.s will come if needed to quickly intercept invading Iraqi troops.

3.   Yet a war has been fought over this desolate place along the nebulous border between Ethiopia and Eritrea.

4.   Father Germanos sought spirituality in the desolate holy place.

5.   In winter the graveyard is a desolate place.