Back many eons ago when Mother Earth was still forming and changing and the people and animals were unsure of who they should be, many of the creatures we know today and think we understand had not yet assumed their final shape and purpose.

During that time there was no thing such as good and bad. There was light and dark but not yet, goodness or evil. The people being the latest creations were also the smartest but they were weak and easy prey for those much bigger and stronger. They couldn’t out run the wolves, or fight with the giant bears, or hide from the eagles who would come and steal their children. And although they were many at first they soon saw that they would be gone, wiped out, by these other animals if something didn’t happen to help them soon.

They called out to Mother Earth saying “Why don’t you help us. They are killing us. They steal our children and we can do nothing. Soon we will all be gone.” Mother Earth replied “But I gave you everything you need to survive and make this earth your own. It is why you were the last to arrive. You have the power to overcome the wolves and the bears and even the mighty eagles who swoop down from the sky. This power lies in your ability to think and plan and work together. No other creatures on earth have this power.”

The people went away and studied her words and saw that this was true. They did something they had never done before and that was gather and choose a leader and decide what to do. They made a plan to capture their worst enemy which was the eagle because it stole their children, catching them as they tried to run and carried them off to their nests to feed their young.

The plan they chose was very smart but very dangerous and it needed someone to put themselves in harm’s way so that all the children would live and be safe from now unto forever. A young man-child of the people came forth and said he would do it, he would be the one. His parents cried and screamed and scratched their flesh in mourning but ultimately gave their blessing and he prepared to be the bravest of the brave that day.

Nearby where the people stayed there was a cave, a magical cave that was filled with living stone. It was fluid and changed shape and color at will. The people knew this but the eagle did not, and it was their plan to have the young man lure the eagle after him by running just fast enough to keep the eagle close but not catch him until they entered the cave. The eagle being arrogant and haughty could only see that the boy was trapped now and easy prey.

The eagle dove into the cave flying faster than it had ever flown before and seeing the boy at the end of the canyon reached forward with its terrible beak to catch him and found itself trapped in the narrow confines of the stone walls. Nothing had ever overcome it before and it began to scream in rage and frustration as the living moving stone slowly enveloped it and turned it into its final eternal shape.

The people were over joyed at their victory and celebrated long into the night, happy that they had saved their children and overcome a mighty enemy. But they were saddened too, because the young man who had so bravely offered himself up to the eagle could not get out of the canyon and he too was slowly turned to stone. He can be seen today as well as the eagle, as a small rounded boulder below the eagle’s wing.

The centuries have added the colors to both the eagle and the boy and they glow in the light of the sun that illuminates the canyon daily, caught there forever in their final struggle. Now visitors to this hallowed ground walk past and note how the stone looks like an eagle but they have no knowledge of the incredibly heroic struggle that took place here in the beginning of time, as the people took the first steps towards taking their place as the favored ones and becoming the caretakers of this earth.

We know this place as Antelope canyon and you can go there and see the eagle and the boy and watch the colors change but you can’t stay long enough to see the stone move.