"Della stood on the red rock ridge that overlooked the lush desert landscape, once underwater millions of years ago. The arid wind swirled the reddish dust around her feet and the heat created a haze that hung like a tapestry out along the horizon. She closed her eyes to give into the experience of the vortex. She felt the energy move up through her feet and take hold of her core; not a jolt, but a firm hand lending guidance."
I sat on my cozy little patio as the hummingbirds flitted to and from from the feeder that hangs four feet away from me. If I sit very still the tiny birds have no fear of zooming in, hovering near the feeder, their wings beating noisily, before landing on the feeder for a drink of the sugary liquid. I waited until 7am to shatter the silence of this quiet little neighborhood tucked in the hills overlooking Sedona. I was anxious to traverse the area on Bessie before the heat settled over the landscape.
The Chapel of the Holy Cross sits high above Sedona; a 90 foot cross seems to anchor the structure to the solid red rock. I climbed the steep road and ramp leading up to the entrance of the church. Although it is a Catholic church, all people are welcome. There were a couple different groups of people and I guess what struck me as incongruous was the number of people who just stopped to take selfies of them standing in front of the church. I declined to take a selfie and walked inside the structure. The 90 foot cross hung in the glass front of the church inside dominates the interior. I lit a candle and said a prayer for my youngest daughter. Then I took a seat along one of the side pew. I closed my eyes and sat in the silence, the smell of candles wafting up through the interior, lending a scented heat to the stuffy interior. I remembered the bible verse in Matthew: "Everyone therefore who hears these words of mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man, who built his house on a rock. The rain came down, the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on that house; and it didn't fall, for it was founded on the rock."
I rode out along the many red rock formations, all of them have names - Teapot Rock, Cathedral Rock, Thunder Mountain (Walt Disney had a home in Sedona and when he built Disney World he had a replica of Thunder Mountain built with a Runaway Mine Train ride), Snoopy Rock, Coffee Pot Rock, Mushroom Rock and so on. I eventually tired of looking at rocks and headed downtown to check out a Jeep tour. After I paid $14.75 for a smoothie and cooled down from the heat of the morning I sauntered into the PINK JEEP PLACE. But not before a woman took my temperature! I walked up to the counter and inquired about a tour. "Sorry, we are doing single parties (which in itself is an oxymoron)." So you mean if I walked in with three other people you would take us on a tour, but not a single person? "It's corporate policy (right there I knew I didn't want this tour company) because of COVID19." I was not interested in arguing the logic - or lack thereof - of her argument.
I walked across the street to the Safari Off-Road Tour Company (they are family owned, live in the area and there is no corporate policy to wrestle with) to inquire about a tour (she didn't take my temperature either). I arranged for a tour at 1pm then spent a couple hours watching the activity in the little tourist trap called Sedona. I'm reminded of how laid back and Bohemian Key West used to be in the late '70's and '80's before Hyatt built a leviathan of a hotel at the end of Duval Street and ten years later Mallory Square was dug out to accommodate the giant cruise ships disgorging tens of thousands of passengers each week. I'm guessing Sedona used to be like Key West in that respect.
My tour 'group' consisted of two other people: mom Denise and her son Vincent. Fun people! Joe, our guide was incredibly versed on the region and incredibly accommodating. The only tour available was the Outlaw Tour which followed a former wagon trail up into the rocks where outlaws hid out (the town of Jerome was a notorious outlaw hangout) in the old west. I told Joe that the Vortex Tour was not available and that I really needed to experience a vortex while in Sedona. He said no problem, I'll make sure you experience one!
The terrain is incredibly rugged but the ride was better than any I've had at an amusement park! Choking red dust and all. Joe gave us the history of the outlaws - and the original Marlboro Man Mr. Bradshaw who owned a ranch in the area. We stopped at the Honanki Heritage Site, where the Anasazi (umbrella name from many smaller Native American tribes) built their homes in the rock cliffs. Call me crazy, but I get excited about ancient stuff. After a short hike (which mom Denise was not prepared for as she had on flip flops) we were gazing across the narrow ravine at the fairly well preserved dwellings carved into the rock, the wall (which looked like bricks but was piled rock held together by some type of mortar) still standing.
We climbed higher in search of my vortex. Joe stopped the Jeep, kicking up a cloud of red dust, atop a rise with one lone Juniper tree standing, its trunk and limbs bent for all eternity to the direction of the wind. A lone van type camper was set up on the rise. I looked at Joe and said 'how the hell did they get up here in that?' He replied, 'very slowly.' Joe took two thin copper rods shaped like 'L's' out from under his seat. While mom and son were taking selfies Joe said, 'come with me.' I followed him as he approached the camper, stopping about 30 paces from it. The couple sitting in the shade of the Juniper tree looked up, their Utopia disturbed by a tour jeep. Joe and I said hello and then Joe held the copper tubes loosely in his hands, as he walked towards the edge of the rise, very slowly the copper started to cross each other...from the energy emitted by the vortex! I stood transfixed. Joe walked back, gave me the copper tubing and instructed me to hold it very loosely as I walked toward the edge. And yes, they moved. The camper man - who looked to be in his '60's - was beyond exited too "I knew we were someplace special!' he exclaimed. "We came here to commune with aliens!" Joe and I looked at each other, smiled, and walked back to the jeep. I thanked Joe profusely for showing me the vortex. I asked him if he believed aliens frequented the area. He said, "I believe it is a vast universe and why wouldn't there be life out there besides ours? I also believe they have been here, taken a look around and decided its better wherever they come from!" The other concept he tossed out there for consideration: why are places like Sedona, Area 51 and a few other wide open spaces in the west the only place people come to see them???
Before we left the vortex, I stacked rocks for an Inukshuk directly in line with the edge of the ridge and the Juniper tree that twisted precariously out over the rock. The Inukshuk signals travelers that 'you are on the right path' for food, shelter, and hospitality. My dad took his own life in 2014 - no one will ever understand why. The first Inukshuk I built for him was on the ascent to Pikes Peak the day my brother called me to deliver the news (the day before Father's Day). I've built Inukshuks all over the country - Alaska, Hawaii, Nova Scotia, and everywhere I travel. If his spirit is wandering, I want him to know where he can find shelter.
By the time I returned to my little bird sanctuary, I was sweaty, covered in red dust and felt as though I swallowed half the desert. I stopped downtown and ate dinner, pulled Bessie into the gravel drive - nearly dropping it for the second time in two days - showered and promptly fell asleep at 630. I had planned to catch a sunset and the night sky - aliens and all - but that will have to wait.
Debi Tolbert Duggar is the author of 'Riding Soul-O'
Part Memoir, Part Travelogue, Part Spiritual Salvation
Available at Bessieandme.com or online wherever books are sold
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