Canyon Short Story

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A short narrative I wrote about the squirrels at the canyon.

The Eighth Wonder

There is the old adage that says “big things come in small packages.” I’m not quite sure who said this but it could possibly have been my mother. More than likely, I probably heard it years ago on an episode of The Brady Bunch. It was the one where Bobby was hung up about being short and gets stuck in a Sam’s meat locker with Greg. Fortunately he is small enough to squeeze through the glass window and save the day. Who would have expected this bit of wisdom to play itself out at one of the most beautiful places on earth. The Grand Canyon!
A multitude full of words comes to mind when you think of The Grand Canyon. Breathtaking, life changing, wondrous to name a few. Along with anticipation, all of these words were jogging for space in my mind as I neared the entrance to Grand Canyon National Park. You have a ways to travel before you reach the “big hole” so there is endless time to envision all of the wonders that this place holds. I could clearly visualize the multi-colored rock, the expanse of the canyon and the Colorado River below.
I quickly parked my car and hopped on the bus that would take me to several along the South Rim of the canyon. With all the reckless abandon of a ten year old, I jumped onto the bus hoping to find a group of “wonderers” like myself. Much to my surprise, what I got was a bus loaded with senior citizens looking like they were on their way to the Grand Canyon in the sky.

“Am I on the right bus?”

“Am I at the Grand Canyon?”

These questions could wait. Onward to the first lookout point, I thought.
As the bus sputtered to a stop, I was the first “younger” individual waiting at the door like a kid peering into the window of a candy store. In what seemed like hours, the doors of the bus flew open. At that moment, I knew it was my goal to sprint to that lookout to ease the anxiety of my long wait and to fill my soul with this impeccable place.
The Grand Canyon exploded before my eyes! There was nothing to compare the experience to. The colors, rock millions of years old and a mighty river that created it all. I could die now!
As time stood still, my attention surprisingly turned to the unlikeliest of creatures you would find at the canyon. A squirrel! This squirrel was no Rocky or Sherlock mind you. This was one of the biggest I’d ever seen. Think squirrel on steroids or a genetic cloning accident with my Labrador.
The reason I found this squirrel to be so fascinating was what he was eating. This big creature was eating a small packet of mayonnaise! This would explain the abnormal size. I thought at any moment he would ask me for a ham sandwich or some ketchup. This is why they ask you not to feed any wildlife you might encounter.
Here I have one of the Seven Wonders of the World before me and I am watching a squirrel eat a packet of mayonnaise! How dare he distract me! For some reason that only the canyon gods could explain, I was feeling the same peace watching this squirrel as I was gazing the canyon.
He took quite some time to savor this delight and then quietly went on his way through some brush and down the canyon.
This squirrel was strangely on my mind for the duration of my trip. I really didn’t have to look very far beyond a squirrel to find the peace and wonder I craved. Big things really do come in small packages of mayonnaise and overweight squirrels. I will never look at squirrels, The Grand Canyon, and mayonnaise for that matter, the same way ever again.

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