After their visit to the Grand Canyon, Silvia and Cosmo head down to Flagstaff. Established in 1882 as a railroad stop, today this lovely little city has a population of just over 67,000 and is home to Northern Arizona University, Lowell Observatory and several ski resorts. Surrounded by mountains, the quaint downtown is filled with cafes, souvenir shops and eateries. They head to the downtown for dinner and afterwards, check into a nearby hostel for the night.
The hostel reminds Cosmo of his college dorm room and triggers memories of his brief stay at college which leads to intense feelings of regret for dropping out of college. As he’s in the midst of regretting, Silvia comes by and drags him out of his room to go to a cafe where she claims they have the best coffee in the world. While at the cafe, Cosmo asks Silvia if she ever has regrets.
âNo,â she said. Probably because she was too busy thinking of the future to go into the past. People who spent time regretting were stuck in the past. âMom regrets a lot. Maybe you take after her. One time I heard her beating herself up for putting Vince in kindergarten too early. He was already in fourth grade at the time, and he was doing great in school, but she thought for some reason that he was showing signs of being in a class that was too advanced for him. And she just couldnât let it go. I heard her talking to Dad about it one night, and he says to her âYou shouldnât feel so bad. You didnât kill anybody.â I thought that was one of the craziest things I ever heard Dad say. But I think it helped her, because I never heard her talk about it anymore after that. So maybe you should start thinking that way too. Like, maybe you fucked up, but you didnât killed anybody.â She laughed and Cosmo laughed too, and with his laughter he was able to forget his regret of dropping out. Frankâs crazy wisdom came through for him. After all, he never did kill anybody.
The scene below from their visit to the Grand Canyon is my favorite scene from the book and really the essence of the entire story!
Excerpt from Discovery of an Eagle
They drove right to the South Rim as the park ranger who greeted them had instructed. The magnificent Canyon opened itself up to the sky, which was half deep blue, and half filled with clouds. The clouds hung around the mountains as if they were formed to each other. Light came through the cloudless spaces in thick, bright strips and turned the Canyon iridescent shades of pink, red, brown, and orange. Each time the light shifted the picture changed dramatically. Cosmo thought it wouldnât amaze him, but he was wrong.
As he stood and stared out at the wonder, a bald eagle flew by him, only a few feet in front of where he stood. He couldnât believe that the creature had flown so close to him. It landed on a ledge for a few seconds and then took off again, its wingspan reaching across nearly the whole of Cosmoâs field of vision. Silvia stood right beside him, watching the eagle as it flew over their heads. Neither spoke a word until it flew away and disappeared behind a cloud.
âWow!â Silvia said. âAn eagle. I love eagles!â She looked like she wanted to start jumping up and down.
âYeah,â Cosmo said, still staring at the final trace of the majestic bird. âI donât think Iâve ever seen one so close.â
âDonât you want to know why I love them so much?â she said, disregarding her brotherâs comment.
âWhy?â Cosmo asked as if humoring his sister. âBecause youâre such a patriot?â He laughed, knowing well that it wasnât the correct answer.
She looked back at him snidely and said, âBecause of what they mean.â
He didnât say anything. He knew he didnât have to. He knew his sister would tell him the answer without being prompted to do so.
âStrength, courage, immortality, spirit, divinity,â she said, gazing into the spectacular gorge below.
He knew about eagles symbolizing courage and strength, but not about immortality, spirit and divinity. The picture of the eagle was still fresh in his mind, gracefully sweeping over the earth, its wings spread like an angel. Divinity seemed to fit just right as something that this phantom bird should symbolize. It glides along with unearthly grace to remind everyone that our own journey can be as smooth or as rocky as we chose to make it. It appears, and then it disappears as if by some divine magician, and in its brief revelation, reminds us that we all have the potential to rise above.
This post is from my blog series on the places visited in the road trip story, âDiscovery of an Eagle.â
Grace Mattioli is the author of the Greco Family Trilogy books, including Olive Branches Donât Grow on Trees, Discovery of an Eagle, and The Bird that Sang in Color. These books are available from all major online book sellers, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Apple Books.
