Driving the highways and back roads of Indian Country means running into those yellow “Watch for Elk” signs from time to time. I’ll never forget coming face to face with a herd in the Grand Canyon’s South Rim. We were walking from the El Tovar Hotel over to the post office complex when we spotted a group of five adults and two youngsters. We were on a level park path and they were grazing about fifteen feet or so from where we were passing.

First of all, they were BIG! These guys, each adorned with a huge rack of glittering antlers, stood about eight or nine feet high. We could feel their sudden anxiety like a wave; we knew at once not to do anything other than move on quickly and quietly. No clicking of cameras, no matter how picturesque the view. No cooing or waving, or attempts to draw closer. It was a pity, for they are beautiful creatures—but they are wild animals and this was their turf.

When I saw this beaded fellow at Turquoise Village in Zuni last year, I knew he’d be the perfect commemorative souvenir.