I didn’t notice the Medicine Man for some time. He stood 10-15 meters apart from the crowd, singing something in the Hualapai people’s language (if such a language exists), shaking his magical thing which I don’t know the name of. What was he doing? On the other hand, what else could a Hualapai Indian Medicine Man be doing at the edge of the Grand Canyon, alongside of all of us? Keeping off the bad spirits? Perhaps.
Shooting the Fearless Beast of The Grand Canyon and the environs took me quite some time. When we finally went to the Grand Canyon Skywalk the Indian doorkeeper held us back. The Skywalk was closed for a quarter of an hour as a massive thunderstorm was coming our way. The Skywalk is closed when violent, lightning producing thunderstorms approach within 3 miles.
Five minutes later we were ordered to board the bus. The only folks allowed to drive or walk free near the Skywalk were the proud Hualapai people, who own the grounds. The storm was indeed moving towards us, and it was violent. Before stepping into the bus, I looked back. The only person standing at the edge of the Canyon was the Medicine Man, probably still singing in the Hualapai people’s language (if such a language exists), and shaking his magical thing which I don’t know the name of. He was fighting the approaching thunderstorm all by himself.
We had to return to the base and wait till the storm passed. It wouldn’t take more than 30-40 minutes, we were told. But as we’ve arrived at the base, the emergency evacuation began. The thunderstorm, which turned out to be extremely violent with lightnings and hail, was approaching faster than expected, and nobody was safe, not even inside the base. Personal cars had to leave immediately due to the imminent danger of flash-floods on the route out.
So did he fail, the Indian Medicine Man? Wasn’t he strong enough to keep the evil spirits at bay? Was he unable to turn out the thunderstorm?
On the other hand, nobody died that day at the Canyon, nor on the road out of there. And even though the road flooding began, everybody escaped.
I prefer to think that he won, the proud Hualapai people Medicine Man, the last man standing on the edge of the Canyon, facing a violent thunderstorm head on.
