Lots have changed since my last blog post. Games in Washington came to an end. We started our first day volunteering at PEFO. We got to see a huge hole in the ground and not get trampled by the crowds.

We arrived back at PEFO early afternoon. Sarah, the volunteer coordinator, was off celebrating her birthday, but she had alerted others of our coming. We were able to sign papers sufficient to allow us to drive a NPS vehicle. Sarah wanted us to "rove" through the park driving an official vehicle. That's exactly what we did. Finally. We really had wanted to do a trip through the park when we first arrived, but the shutdown prevented us from doing it. We now have a better sense of what to see, and we certainly did see lots of petrified wood. Tomorrow we don our VIP uniforms and begin our volunteer gig. The schedule calls for us to work 8 out of the next 10 days, 9 hours each day. We were not expecting full time work, actually we should get overtime with this schedule. So, we do need some clarity on what is expected of us. You can be sure they will be more on this subject later.

Yesterday we made a trip to the Grand Canyon. It is a grand canyon indeed. We were there 44 years ago for our honeymoon, and despite having eyes only for Shannon, I still remembered things experienced 44 years ago that were similar to today. Lots of people speaking many languages. At several stops English was a minority language. Lots of cameras. Someone once said, and I take broad license here in paraphrasing, that the Grand Canyon produces more bad photographs than any other place on earth. I did add to that notion. But we all were taking pictures just the same in the hopes that at least 1/10 of 1% of them might turn out good. The only thing I did not see this year that I saw 44 years ago were people with the backs of their cameras opened trying to load film. Progress has been made.

The Grand Canyon is a special place. I was overwhelmed by its immensity, and I had forgotten how far below our vantage points was the river responsible for the canyon. We did not have a cloudy day to see shadows move across the face of the mesas and cliffs, but we did stay long enough to see morning sun, afternoon sun, and evening shadows begin to encroach on the canyon walls. The colors were as vivid as Sedona country, but the scene was much grandeur. And, no one looked bored. Everyone, no matter age, gender, or ethnicity, seemed to be in awe of what they were seeing. The Park Service does their usual exemplary job of interpreting, explaining, and displaying what has been going on during the past billions of years. The efficiency of moving and managing people was also evident, and the vantage points to stop and look, really look, were well planned so that new surprises were in store at every stop. It was a privilege to once again visit the Grand Canyon. We are glad to have had the opportunity to do so.