Have you heard the story of Mary Lou Macintyre? No? Well, if you have a minute, I will share the wonders of Mary Lou.

Mary Lou was born in a small log cabin on Big Diamond Lake in Stillwater, Minnesota. She was usually a happy baby, but when she got mad, you better watch out! Her screams could make the whole town shake. Her cries broke windows from Stillwater to New York City. Her parents were so worried about upsetting their neighbors that they decided to run away to the plains of Texas where there were no people.

Mary Lou was happy in Texas. She loved to catch the longhorns with her baby blankets. She would make a loop with the blankets, and throw them over the Great Plains, stopping the longhorns in their tracks. Then, Mary Lou would pull the bulls toward her, over the Great Plains. She would jump on their backs and ride them all over the state. One of these longhorns became Mary Lou’s best friend. She named it Tex.

After Mary Lou graduated from high school, she wanted to explore the world. She packed her bags, loaded them onto Tex, and said farewell to her ma and pa. Mary Lou set off going west. Mary Lou had always wanted to see the Pacific Ocean.

Mary Lou and Tex headed through what today is called Arizona. They were used to the heat of Texas, but that Arizona heat was hotter than the sun! Mary Lou knew that Tex was thirsty, but there was no water out in the desert. Tex started slowing down. It was too much for him to keep carrying Mary Lou and all her bags. First, Mary Lou started dropping her bags to lighten the load. When that was still not enough, she got off and walked. Tex was still too weak to move. Mary Lou knew they would not survive if they took a break in the desert, so she started pushing Tex through the sand. Tex’s enormous size and Mary Lou’s boot tracks left large craters as they moved through the desert. Today we call this the Grand Canyon.

Source: Mary Lou Macintyre
By Exploros, CC BY-SA 4.0