Page 19 of Madam Alana

Christophe laughed. “Touche!”

“And here we have the Hoover Dam, named after our 31stPresident Herbert Hoover back in 1935. It used to be the largest dam but hassince been surpassed by others. Still to this day it is considered a marvel ofengineering excellence. That body of water butting up against it is the ColoradoRiver, but you’ll be seeing that up close and personal,” the pilot announced.

“We are?” I tapped Christophe on the thigh.

He took my hand and held it against his leg. “Surprisenumber two.” He grinned.

I bit down on my bottom lip and held back the squeal ofexcitement that fought to come out, preferring to squeeze his hand instead andstare out at the landscape below.

The helicopter kept on, leaving the dam and lake behind us.I gasped when the Grand Canyon came into view. And then was shocked to my corewhen the pilot dipped down and flew into the canyon.

“Oh my God!” I gripped Christophe’s hand with both of mineand held it locked between my breasts, the fear of crashing making me hyperventilate.

“Breathe,cheri. We areperfectly safe. This is part of the tour. We fly into the canyon and landthere. Please relax and enjoy the views.” Christophe lifted his chin toward thewindow.

I clung to his arm and wedged myself so close to his body thata piece of paper would not have fit between us as I glanced out at the view.

The canyon was massive, making us seem like tiny specks inthe grand scheme of life. Slowly, my heart rate calmed and my nerves easedwhile my eyes ate up the ethereal view. I couldn’t imagine seeing anything morebeautiful.

“The Grand Canyon averages ten miles across and a mile deepalong the entire 277-mile length. You can see millions of years of geologicalhistory in the red rock and its banding,” the pilot noted. “We’ll be landing onthe west side where you will take a pontoon boat down the river.”

I danced a bit in my seat, unable to keep my excitementunder control. “We’re taking a boat ride inside The Grand Canyon! I can’tbelieve it,” I gushed. “Merci, my husband.”

“I’ll take you everywhere you want to go, Alana, just to seeyour face filled with such wonder. Even the view can’t compare to your beauty.”He brought our clasped hands to his lips and kissed my knuckles.

I flushed at his praise and leaned more heavily against hisside, resting my head on his shoulder. A sigh of contentment slipped from mylips as I took in God’s creation. “It’s magical,” I murmured.

“We’re about to land. See those other helicopters?”

We both looked out the window and saw three of them parkedin a neat line along an embankment near the river.

Once we landed and got out, Christophe and I took picturesof the view, with a camera he pulled out of the backpack he’d brought. The pilotgood-naturedly stood next to his helicopter because I asked if we could haveone with him in front of it. I wanted to capture these memories and was lookingforward to reliving them later and showing Celine all that we’d experienced.

The pilot took several pictures with me snuggled toChristophe with my arms wrapped around his waist. The two of us with our armsspread wide as if we were reaching out and touching the rocky walls of thecanyon. We even took a silly kissing picture with the view behind us.

After we poked around the canyon floor a bit, we were calledto load the pontoon boat. Quickly, I picked up a smooth rock and then a rough,jagged one I’d spotted and put it into my small purse for safe keeping. I likedto gather a keepsake from everywhere I went. I had a rock from a small pondback where I was born in Korea. Another from the land around the orphanage. Aninteresting piece of washed-up coral from the shore in New York, and now acouple pieces of the Grand Canyon. One piece I’d give to Christophe later so hecould keep his own collection if he desired.

We got on the boat and then floated down the Colorado Riverin the middle of the Grand Canyon. I held on to the side of the vessel andsoaked it all in. Christophe huddled close, his arm wrapped protectively aroundmy waist so there was no possibility of me slipping over the side and into theriver, even though we were both in life vests. I leaned back against his chestand together we enjoyed one of the world’s natural wonders. I noted Christophehand off his camera to one of the boat staff and heard the clicking of picturesbeing taken.Good.I wanted to have this memory for later. Beingcuddled up with my husband as we did something most people would never get todo.

The ride was short, only about fifteen to twenty minutes,before we exited and got back into another helicopter with a new pilot.

The pilot narrated more facts about the canyon, the one mostinteresting being that native indigenous people of the Hualapai tribe ownedover a million acres of land including 106 miles of the canyon. The tribeinvited tourists to explore their sacred land, sharing its beauty with the restof the world.

When he finished telling us the history, we landed at GrandCanyon West which had the Skywalk at Eagle Point. It was a U-shaped glassbridge touted as offering the best view of the canyon. Since Christophe hadbooked a private VIP tour, we were able to skip all lines and go straight ontothe glass walkway.

I gripped my husband’s hand with my left and the railingwith my right as I inched slowly out. We’d had to wear booties over our shoesto protect the glass. It felt like I was gliding along with the breeze, muchlike a bird would soar and surf the wind.

I was terrified and filled with exhilaration as the windteased my hair, making it fly in every direction.

“The skybridge is 4,000 feet in the air and over 70 feetabove the ledge of the canyon,” a guide boasted. “But don’t worry. It’sengineered to hold over two million pounds of weight,” he chuckled.

“Just think,moncoeur, we are standing over a crevice in the earththat has existed for millions of years and will continue to exist for a millionmore once humans cease to exist. We are nothing but a blip in the wheel oftime.”

“Definitely puts life into a different perspective,” Iagreed.

“It means we must enjoy as much as we can before it is over.We know not what comes next. I choose not to waste a moment when I can liveeach day to the fullest.” He wrapped his arms around me from behind, caging meagainst the railing where he rested his chin in the crook of my neck. “I willpaint this view for you, and we can hang it in our home as a reminder of thisday and how it brought us together. Would you like that?”

“Absolutely.” I leaned back against his warmth, allowing himto block the wind on each side of me while the desert sun warmed our faces. “Iwould like to see anything you create.”

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