As she perched, Swift and Acrobat landed beside
her, joining her in her musings. Both boys cocked their
heads, sizing up the humans crowding all the way up to the
fences, trying to determine who would have the tastiest
morsels to steal. Problem-Solver ruffled her feathers and
let out a few loud knocks for emphasis. She was in charge
as far as the other ravens were concerned. These
youngsters, made soft by all of the tourists to their home,
thought only of food and mating. Their thoughts did not
expand to their community. They had not yet been born
when the last Agreement had taken place. Problem-Solver
was one of the few ravens who still remembered. She was
getting old. There were few who still remembered the rites
and the rangers were getting faster.
She noted a couple rangers along the rim, escorting
a large group of adults and children towards the tip of
Mather’s Point. Problem-Solver ruffled her feathers as she
regarded the group. The crowd was loudly chattering,
jostling those who had come to the rock earlier than they,
and vying for the best spots. They drank from steaming
cups and patted each other on the back, clearly
congratulating themselves for being there so early. The
rangers assisted them in their efforts to set up shop,
apologizing to those who had arrived earlier, who were
clearly disappointed by their behavior. Behind the crowds
of people were others adjusting their coverings and staring
into black funnels with painted on smiles, all practicing
lines like “back to you in the studio,” and “live from the
Grand Canyon…”
Problem-Solver perked up. Black funnels and
flashing boxes often meant that a human was about to take
a risk. Problem-Solver was also greatly encouraged by how
distracted the rangers were. Their heads whipped from one
6