When ‘The Kayenta Curse’ Becomes a Blessing

Morgan, who owns and operates Eclectic Image Gallery in Sedona with his wife, Elaine, shares extraordinary events that happened to them while photographing the breathtaking natural beauty of the Southwest and elsewhere. The story begins in the far reaches of Northern Arizona. “Nothing could have prepared me for the magnitude of the landscape.”

He writes:

“As I traveled towards Kayenta, the anticipation of what I would find heightened my senses. There was an undeniable energy in the air as if the very essence of this place whispered stories of generations past.”

As captivating as he found the Navajo lands, “it was as if the place was alive with energy.” He and Elaine had sudden car trouble there for years, nearly every time they were in Kayenta, usually near the Anasazi Inn. In the first incident, as Duane was changing their flat tire, he told Elaine, “I feel like I’ve been here before.”

As odd as it seemed, they didn’t give it much thought until “a messenger” visited Duane in their Sedona gallery that displays their stunning photography. He writes: “You’ve had trouble in the Kayenta area, haven’t you?” she asked. “The spirits in Kayenta want to spend time with you. They mean you no harm; they’re just trying to connect with you, as your knowledge is so vast.”

And then, she left. Duane says she was the first of many messengers who visited the gallery. He was told he was a powerful healer.

Morgan had been many things in his life: a steel mill worker who shoveled hot coke onto a conveyor belt, an aircraft mechanic, a Navy Petty Officer on a nuclear guided missile cruiser, a nuclear power plant operator and an artist, but never a healer. He also enjoyed fixing up and selling motorcycles. One day, “a guy came by to see a bike I had for sale and proposed a trade.” The offer was a 35mm camera, lenses, filters and a tripod for the bike. Elaine told him she had always wanted to take photography classes.

“That’s how we got into photography, eventually into owning and operating a gallery.”

The two were drawn to Sedona’s charmingly rustic Tlaquepaque Village. “This new chapter in Sedona was not just about expanding our business; it was about embracing the opportunities and messages that had guided us along the way. Our journey had taught us to trust in the unseen forces that shape our lives.”

As captured in the book, Morgan describes many unusual events that now make more sense to him since he began accepting and exploring his keen intuition and spiritual awakening. When Elaine gave him a birthday gift of a session with a psychic, neither had shared their Kayenta experiences or anything else about themselves.

“You have healing hands and a powerful spirit,” said the psychic. “You’ve lived in the Kayenta area in a previous life. You were a high-level Native American wise man or healer. People came from miles around to be healed by your hands.”

Today, the healing continues. Even before having this insight, visitors have come to the gallery. Some would stand close to him because it made them feel better, he said. “The Kayenta area, once a source of frustration, had become a bridge to a past life, a reminder of the healer I once was and perhaps still am,” he writes.

In the psychic realm, Morgan has scored high in claircognizance, clairsentience, clairaudience and empathy, but low in clairvoyance and mediumship. He receives messages and sees orbs and flashes of light, “angels,” he says. He also recognizes when someone is in pain, which leads to a conversation and often to a meditative healing session he performs alone in the early morning hours to send healing energy.   

Morgan says he continues to learn about the spiritual realm and has a yearning to visit Mayan temples, Machu Picchu and Angkor Wat. “I feel like I need to touch the stone and relay the story of the people who built it,” he said.

He believes his purpose is to heal. “I believe healing shouldn’t cost anything. If you can heal, you should. But I’ll have to wait until I’m retired and have income coming in because my gallery would be overwhelmed.”

In the meantime, Morgan says he has come so far from 20 years of journaling about things he didn’t understand. “I finally paid attention and now I understand. The universe isn’t what you think it is. It’s not an empty void of nothingness, it is full of energy and we are all connected as one.” VVBN

By Bonnie Stevens, VVBN

Eclectic Image Photography is located in Tlaquepaque in Sedona. “The Kayenta Curse” is available on Amazon.

Courtesy Photo: Artist and gallery owner Duane Morgan says his spiritual awakening has played out across decades. In “The Kayenta Curse,” he shares his journey, as documented in his journals and witnessed by his wife, Elaine.