People Who Live On Canyon Ledges

by

Jane St Clair

Author of Walk Me to Midnight

If you come to Arizona, and I hope you do, you want to visit Walnut Canyon National Monument on your way to the Grand Canyon.

Hundreds of years ago, the Sinaqua people lived on the ledges and caves of this canyon.

If you look closely, you can see one of their houses.

Look closer.

Their homes had doors leading to rooms.

It must have been hard to watch little ones on these ledges!

Don't look down!

Archaeologists do not know why the Sinaqua lived on the ledges of the canyon.

I like to think they loved the spirits of mountains and skies.

And that they wanted to live in that sacred space between sky and earth where you can see the faces of the sun gods.

Where you can reach out and touch a bird

Where every creature has wings

And where the sky and the canyon remember each spirit who lived here forever and ever