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Each ancient rock of stone faces has a story to tell;
No storyteller can tell the true tale.
Words pale, inadequate to explain
The work of wind and rain, sleet and snow,
Tectonic plates and lava flow
That shaped this canyon grand.
Only the omnipotent hand
Could create the Grand Canyon -
Not from might alone; no, and not just art.
The omnipotent worked with power and heart
To create this magnificent canyon,
A masterpiece of soul and art.

Great minds puzzle over how this came to be,
This tumultuous love affair of earth, river,
And a mighty, raging sea.
The canyon's story is incised in a cryptic code.
The little gopher knows but cannot tell
The mystery of creation
That wove this magic spell.

Before the great canyon,
Before the mighty sea,
The relentlessness of nature ran wild and free.
Volcanic eruptions from deep within the earth
Were the beginning of the canyon
As nature gave it birth.

From the fiery womb of nature
The canyon was born.
Its infant cry was thunder,
Its release, torrential storms.
The storms formed the waters,
Waters, the sea.
The sea spawned the river -
Nature's mysterious alchemy.
The afterbirth of nature
Was the hot lava flow
That exploded in the waters
As the sea began to grow.
The sea and its river
Cut the mighty gorge.
In this cauldron of creation
The Grand Canyon was forged.

The story is a majestic love affair
So amorous, deep and hot,
That in its fiery passion
It cut through a trillion tons
Of earth and rock.
To join its Spanish lover,
The Great Sea of Cortez,
The Colorado River
Left nothing in its stead.

This was a wild marriage
Between the river and the sea,
Held within rock cathedrals,
Blessed by principalities.
Witnessed by stone faces,
The wedding dance began.
Rock music played on fluted organs,
Thunder and lightning
Struck up the band.
Then the trembling river
Embraced its lover grand,
As sea and river were joined
By omnipotent hands.

They danced with mighty fury
As the waters became one.
Nothing could contain them
In their wild water run.
The first kiss drew blood of fire
When the waters bit the lips
Of the scarlet flaming lava
So hot, it exploded with a kiss.
Two forces of fire and water
Clashed and panted with wild pain.
The fire became the lightning,
The hot steam became the rain.
The lightning lit the stars
And lit all the things we see.
The rain refreshed the earth,
Sprouting flowers, grass, and trees.
The water, earth, and sun
Produced this vista grand
While the mighty Lord above
Nurtured it with loving hands.

This tumultuous love affair
Has left a story rare -
Of canyons and gorge,
Mountains and plains, granite, schist,
And sands of fine grain,
Of rivers, falls, and rapid runs,
Of tragedy and awesome fun.
Day in, day out, from night to sun,
The Grand Canyon's work is never done.
At night the stars light its canopy,
By day, the sun projects its majesty.
From its beginning to eternity,
The beautiful canyon remains a mystery.
Now flowers grow, eagles soar,
In this womb of earth - God's open door

© 2000 James L. Manniso