Life on Mesa Verde Part I

The days have gone fast since I arrived at Mesa Verde. One week of training, one week in uniform already done. The pictures were from part of my training week. We visited the Zuni, a puebloan people claiming direct connection to Mesa Verde. We had an incredible guide who led us into incredible canyons with wonderful rock art, including the picture of the dog on the right, and some kind of human with horns on the left. This may have been a katchina cult dancer in a buffalo costume. The first picture was from this canyon as well. I love it. The canyon was narrow and shallow. It had a great feel, and I can tell why there were so many petroglyphs there. It was an ideal playground and place to relax, make some art, etc. These petroglyphs could be 1000 years old.

Aside from the beautiful canyon, we hiked up to a pueblo, dated around 1200-1300 ad. We also visited Canyon de Chelly, an amazing National Park on Navajo land that also has cultural connection to the Anasazi, a Navajo word meaning something close to "other relatives." This is the group we now call the Ancestral Puebloans at Mesa Verde National Park.

Both Zuni and Canyon de Chelly were spiritual experiences, much like Mesa Verde, when I'm not "thinking" it. Life is Good here. Happy Easter.