Six small islands in the Arabian Gulf are home to an unexpectedly rich assembly of life: nesting terns and endangered sea turtles, predatory crabs and rock-skipping blennies, and everywhere, mice and more mice.

It took passion, yes, but also years of hard work to identify forgotten dyestuffs, and rediscover dyers' recipes lost a century ago. The results, though, include not only very beautiful rugs, but also some changed lives.

Washington wouldn't be the same without the woman who, through seven administrations, has harangued, cajoled and coaxed presidents into making news. Her family background may fuel Helen Thomas's intensity.

"Color possesses me," exulted Paul Klee. "Color and I are one. I am painter." This revelatory moment came as Klee and two artist friends discovered a new world in Tunisia, on a trip that changed their vision.

The phone call came at two a.m.: "There's a lot of oil in the water." It triggered weeks of hard, all-out effort to combat a massive oil spill, to keep plants open and working, and to hold environmental damage to a minimum.