Long before Christopher Columbus "discovered" America, a group of Americans were already thriving in a place we now call Mesa Verde.  The Anasazi ("ancient enemies") - more properly called Ancestral Puebloans - offer lessons from the past that are too hard to ignore.

During a recent family vacation, I ventured back to Mesa Verde National Park for an obligatory stop.  I say this because I had visited the Park twice before.  The archeological remnants of an ancient civilization are splendid, and great for family photographs.

Although I could quote the known facts of this ancient race, I would rather tell you the other side of the story.  The Anasazi people lived from approximately 1,400 years ago to around 1200 A.D.  They were hunters, gatherers, farmers, ranchers, artists, craftsmen, cooks and architects.  They learned, loved, bore children and eventually died - not unlike you and me.

The really fascinating part of the story is why they left such a magnificent place.  This part of the story was told by a somewhat verbose, but well read National Park Service guide.  He told of a race of people living in delicate balance with nature and the environment.  The Anasazi flourished by exploiting their natural resources, always relying on Mother Earth to replenish and heal herself.

The sad, but likely reason that the Anasazi abandoned their beautiful cliff dwellings is not from disease, war or natural disaster, but from overpopulation and resource depletion.  Trees for burning fires, fashioning plow instruments and making weapons became scarce.  Water supplies may not have been able to meet the people's needs.  Wild game may have disappeared.  Waste disposal may have been a problem.  Or perhaps the climate changed, resulting in less rainfall or temperature extremes which the Anasazi were not prepared for.  In the end, the Anasazi abandoned their dwellings and moved on to a more hospitable place.