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Pilgrimage to the Thunderbirds

Photo Essay by Vlad Rebek

Vlad Rebek is a doctoral student in Visionary Practice and Regenerative Leadership with an interest in language systems from ancient petroglyphs to the future of artificial intelligence. He is proficient in many languages, including Czech, English, Polish, French, music composition, computer programming, and he is dedicated to doing his part to reconnect humanity with Mother Earth. This photo essay emerged from an assignment in one of his required doctoral courses, The Phenomenology of Visionary Practice & the Call to Serve.

I spent a warm fall afternoon exploring the oldest rock art, petroglyphs, carved into the little river islands dispersed in the Safe Harbor area on the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania. The Susquehanna River is the third oldest river in the world, flowing for the past 325 million years. Petroglyphs’ ages vary between 500 and 1200 years old, and possibly much older. My guide was Paul Nevin, a respected Indigenous rock art authority, who has studied petroglyphs for the last 40 years. Some of the photos were taken on an infrared wavelength spectrum to show the different dimensions of these ancient messages.

The petroglyphs became alive with messages of the past even if the original meanings are lost. Paul’s explanations connected me directly to the people who created these symbols, making it feel like we were entering another world through his stories. The ancient artist carvers were speaking to those who follow the ancient paths of rivers and stars.

The Peregrine falcon flew by, checking out the shores and ancient islands in the middle of the river. The waters of the Susquehanna River gently amplified the motorboat’s footprints, anxiously splashing against the shore. The waves grew until it quieted again. I could stay here forever. Ancient river spirits have whispered the possibilities of the future and helped me understand the embers we’re walking on as our planet heats up. I asked the petroglyphs for answers. Which way? Ancient carvings shared guidance through the fabric of cosmos leaving secret messages from ancient travelers.

Words came to me in this meditative state, later awakened in a dialog with a drum:

People of the ancient river rowing down the flows under a moonlit sky, under the stars, the stars are falling Look up, the stars are falling, no, it’s the fireflies dancing

People of the ancient river, their spirits in the (brightest) glow of the fireflies dancing, and the thunderbirds soaring . . . Look up, the stars are falling, no, it’s the thunderbirds rolling – in the stardust

Petroglyphs depicting turkey tracks, illustrations of thunderbirds, underwater serpent, and other animals, ancient people, celestial and seasonal events helping travelers

Three concentric circles with Seven Sisters (Pleiades)