Sedona Story

By Barbarita de Jesus Tomaszewska

The mystical beauty of Sedona is a luminous place to be for any celebration. There I feel a harmony and spiritual connection with God and with nature. I always enjoy going to Sedona, a place I visit often throughout the year. There are four beautiful seasons experienced in Sedona; each highlighted by the radiating appearance of its own beauty. Summertime brings sunshine that illuminates the deep blue sky. In the winter I saw Sedona with the exquisite snow on the red rocks, draping the trees like a wedding dress worn by a new bride. Spring blooms from winter, blanketing the fields with wildflowers. In the fall the leaves change to orange and yellow, the color of gold. During the rainy monsoon season I witnessed vibrant rainbows arching across the beautiful skies of Sedona.

Sedona’s main attraction is its stunning array of red sandstone formations, the Red Rocks, for which she is famous. The formations of colorful layers of rocks appear to glow in brilliant orange and red when illuminated by the rising or setting sun. The Red Rocks form a breathtaking backdrop for everything from spiritual pursuits to the hundreds of hiking and mountain biking trails. The famous rocks: Bell Rock, Thunder Mountain, Coffee Pot, Sugar Loaf Hill and Cathedral Rock are transcendental. Through the year, people from around the world come to celebrate their honeymoons and much more. This is evident by just walking through the streets of Sedona. One can hear a variety of languages#mdash;too many to count. Sedona is also a haven for artists and art lovers. All the colors of Sedona inspire the art that fills the walls of the many local galleries. Everybody seems happy and glowing because of the majestic beauty of Sedona. Likewise, Sedona is a wonderful place for growing a spiritual and personal relationship with God. His presence is felt wherever you go. As someone said: “God created the Grand Canyon, but He lives in Sedona.” For these reasons, I would like to live there too. The bright side is that I’m living nearby, so I am able to enjoy the beauty of Sedona more often.

One year, just after Christmas I spent three days at my friend’s cabin in Sedona. The place was quite solitary, deserted with a variety of beautiful cacti. From the cabin I saw Cathedral Rock, and further down was Oak Creek flowing with crystalline water. There was no cellphone signal, no radio, no TV, no connection with the outside world. It was amazing. Just God and me … and the javelinas. In the mornings I was able to see delightful sunrises. Each morning, birds rose with the sun singing marvelous melodies glorifying the Creator. I enjoyed the divine music. In the evenings I was delighted with the sunsets. One afternoon, I cherished the full moon rising behind the red rocks and meditated on the beauty of God. It was breathtaking. I do not need any words to praise God when watching His Creation for I believe His Creation speaks for itself. I treasure that time in my friend’s cabin and every time I have spent in Sedona since.

On September 14, 2011, I was celebrating my 33rd anniversary of my Consecration. After the morning Thanksgiving Mass, I went to Sedona to continue the celebration. When I arrived there, I parked my car, and went for a walk on Main Street. I visited galleries, shops, and especially jewelry stores. After a while it started to rain, and I went to a tavern for a glass of local, delicious beer. Later, I drove up to the Chapel of the Holy Cross. I stayed in the chapel for a while, prayed, and I was delighted in the beauty of God looking around the chapel through the windows. Outside it was raining cats and dogs, and there were puddles in the road. I decided to head back to Flagstaff. While I was driving north on highway 89A, colorful rainbows came up one after another. The colors were red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet. There were two rainbows at the same time. I’ve always seen a rainbow in the sky, far away from me, but this time I was inside of the rainbow. While I was driving home, a rainbow was up from one side of the road to the other side, and I was inside of the arc, like in a colorful glowing tunnel. Sometimes I was in one rainbow, other times I was inside of two beautiful rainbows. That was amazing. Seems like time stopped, and I was in another dimension. It was like from the Bible: the alliance between God and me. It was the sign of the covenant that God makes between Himself and me forever from the day of my Baptism when I was 6 days old. Even this day I was sad and crying, missing my family, as all of them are in Heaven. Somehow, through the rainbow I was connected with God and with them. It was a divine connection. What a glorious day! Without rain there are no rainbows. Every time, when I am driving to Sedona on 89A, with joy, I remember the two rainbows that I saw on September 14, on the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.

I invite you to visit the mystical beauty of Sedona. There you will experience the many seasons of Red Rock Country and connect with God.

These miraculous things could only happen here, in this spiritual place because God lives in Sedona.

By Del Lawrence

Photo courtesy of Jordan Diamond

I went to Sedona to visit with my daughter during the spring time; she had recently moved from New York and I was curious to find out where Sedona was located and what the place was like. I had only heard of Sedona in passing Geography. I arrived at Phoenix Sky Harbour International Airport after travelling from Toronto, Canada, travel time 3 hours travelling from Toronto Central time zone to Arizona Mountain time zone, there was 3 hours’ time difference to which I had to get used to. My first visit to Sedona was for a 3 day weekend. I stayed at the beautiful Sedona Mago Retreat Centre, to see the red bricks that were similar in colour to the rocks of Sedona, with the backdrop of pristine wilderness and huge red rocks was amazing. I have never seen a place like this before. The quietness that existed—it is as if amidst that quiet environment, my mind, body and spirit became very relaxed.

On a couple of occasions we journeyed from the Centre, travelling along the pristine red dirt rocky road, and for miles there were no buildings, only desert land, cactus and scattered vegetation, passing all this on our way into the town of Sedona for supper at a fine dining restaurant.

The next day I woke up early and joined the group in meditation and prayer. At the retreat centre, I was introduced to a form of relaxation therapy in the form of special massage techniques and this was very relaxing and for the entire day, I felt very relaxed and had a calming spirit.

My daughter and I visited one of the national parks and I was most impressed with the preservation of the environment and the natural habitat. The formation of the rocks was a sight to behold, they had their definite shape as if they were carved by God and they were just sitting there as if they were wonders of the universe. I began to ask questions as to why Sedona was so beautiful and why those huge rocks. I have never see such wonder, such perfect shapes. The closest that I have come to seeing such wonder was when I visited Alberta, Canada and there were huge rocks but they were natural colour. The mystical energy of Sedona was amazing. I think of Sedona as the Garden of Adam and Eve. There was this rock called “Bell Rock” because it shaped like a bell, we tried climbing it, the sun was too hot and the rock was so hot that it could be used for sauna. There were markers in the park and this was placed there should visitors need to find their way back. The rocks were like between God and man the unspoken word of something eternal. The wilderness reminded me of watching the John Wayne cowboy movies; the background in the films looks like Sedona, especially when driving on the road to the Mago Retreat Centre.

When we visited the town, the many shops along the way, with so much to sell, the various artistry, psychic readings, Sedona jewelry were all very tempting. The people were amazing and all so ready to assist. I ended up buying a beautiful piece of crystal which I currently have displayed in my office on my credenza.

As I looked around, I noticed that there were several churches, almost on every corner. I wondered why so many churches? The houses and the landscape all blend so beautiful amidst the red rocks. There were only low rise residential homes and condominiums. This gave Sedona that vacationing community feel.
I wondered about the soil, water minerals from all those rocks and the effects on mankind. The flow of the water in the rivers, how clean was it. I thought to myself that since there were lots of cactus plants that there had to be lots of water underground. Driving back to Sky Harbour, the travelling route was amazing, great roads and very scenic route.

I would not mind visiting Sedona more often. There is no ocean nearby and I love the ocean, but because of all the other wonderful attributes, Sedona is absolutely wonderful for a relaxed and stress free lifestyle. I think of Sedona as that beautiful gift to mankind—“An American Gem.”

By Tonya Whelan

Yolessa and I asked people on the street “What Does Energy Mean To You?”

Here are some of the answers we received.

By Tonya Whelan

Yolessa and I found one woman who had a particularly lovely experience to share with us at Bell Rock, and a way to help her deal with the death of a beloved pet.

By Tonya Whelan

People come to Bell Rock for so many reasons: the beauty, the energy, to experience the vortex, and to soak up the landscape. Here are a few things that people there told us when Yolessa and I last visited this popular vortex in the Village of Oak Creek on the outskirts of Sedona.

By Dylan Marshall

I’m Dylan Marshall, host of The Heart of Sedona, a feature exploring “earth-centered living through self-realization.”

I am proud to have Hansori Keliikuli as my first guest. A native of Hawaii, Hansori is a Spiritual Intuitive and manager of Sedona Story in Uptown Sedona. Listen as Hansori discusses self-realization, our connection with nature, and the path of humanity.

Blessings of light, laughter, and love to you all!

By Tonya Whelan

Yolessa and I asked people on the street “If you could have one superpower, what would it be?”

We were surprised by the answers we received.

By Tonya Whelan

Yolessa asked these people why they come to Sedona. Let’s see what brings them here, and what keeps them coming back – Time and time again.

By M. Seo

I recently started taking pictures of Sedona, especially the people who come here and the people who live here. Some of them I know, but most of them, I don’t. The encounters are precious and tend to be brief.

This is Donna and her mom, Adivon. They spent the weekend here together for Mother’s Day. So super cute. Mom had one of those disposable cameras, and Donna was using the camera on her Blackberry, so I offered to take their picture.

This is Heuiseon (it’s pronounced “hee sun”). She met her soul the first time she came to Sedona, and the second time, she dedicated her life to helping other people connect with their souls. She has a bright smile and sparkly eyes.

Another couple from that Canada group. I didn’t get to talk to them as much. They seemed very warm toward each other. They made yet another endearing couple passing through Sedona on their happy travels together.