[Paula Fernandez]

Coming Together, Coming Apart

The Grand Canyon, both American birthright and rite of passage. We have come early to avoid the crowds. And the crowds? They have come early to avoid us. The parking lots are filling with cars from every state of the union: F-150s next to Teslas, minivans next to Harley Davidsons. We, the People, have arrived to look out over our iconic shared horizon. We have come for Awe.

But how to find it? Nervous parents call their too-bold children back from the precipices. Slow moving groups create traffic jams on the ridge trail. We take turns helping each other get the requisite family photos—mom, dad, and kids crouching together under the yawning tent of the sky.

outside the rails
history paces slowly
past our cage

The viewing decks are packed, and we wait for our turn at the front. Pulling out the binoculars we scan the canyon floor below and see the muddy churning of the Colorado River – our featured artist—continuing its master work, indifferent to the critical response. Moving the binoculars upward, we see great birds of prey--black slashes in the fabric of the sky.

two eagles circling
--wait--
are they vultures?