Despair gushed through a swirl of sharp barbed wire, recently snipped, that had only moments before impeded the flow of 5,000 people crossing from Syria into Turkey.

I was either in the wrong place at the right time, or the right place at the wrong time. And due to safety concerns, both scenarios could have been correct.

I was in the Adiyaman region of Turkey for part four of Paul Salopek’s “Out of Eden” walk—documenting chronic migration due to conflict. I had spent the first two weeks at numerous refugee camps, telling the story of the 1.5 million Syrians that are now guests in neighboring Turkey.

Needing a respite from the often-heartbreaking narrative of the story, I met up with Paul for