They Were Always There

There weren’t always dragons in the Valley de Saut-d'Eau. The natives of the land were adamant about making this known after a group of tourists drowned in the waterfalls during the annual religious pilgrimage held in July. This was the only narrative that could be given as the video depicting a legion of scaled-winged beasts, hovering over the waters as each victim perished underneath, began circulating on social media. Only those lacking the ability to discern believed this to be a new phenomenon, dragons in the valley.

Those with eyes to see and ears to hear knew, and continue to understand, that our reality of the world is inverted. To see the true nature of things, one must turn everything upside down. It became crystal clear when a portrait of the dragon league apparition, alongside a scripture from the bible, appeared on the same palm tree venerated as the site of the Virgin Mary. Woe unto them that seek deep to hide their counsel from the LORD, and they say, “Who seeth us and who knoweth us”? Surely your turning of things upside down shall be esteemed as the potter’s clay: for shall the work say of him that made it, “he made me not”, or shall the thing framed say of him that framed it, “he had no understanding”? (Isaiah 29-15:16)

Valle de Saut-d’Eau is a commune in the Mirebalais Arrondissement of Haiti about 60 miles north of Port-Au-Prince. This beautiful place is home to the tallest waterfall in Haiti created by the earthquake that occurred on the land in 1842. It’s been doted as a spectacular site for seasonal tourism, with Trip Advisor listing it as number 73 on their “75 things to do in Haiti” tour guide.

The well pronounced supernatural, fantastical, cultural significance that Valle de Saut-d’Eau has held since the 19th century didn’t appear to include voracious dragons until recently. Historically, Catholics and Vodou practitioners revered it as a place of heightened spiritual energy after the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel, also known as the Haitian lwa Erzulie Danto, made an appearance as an apparition on a palm tree in 1849.

A local man, Fortune Morose, witnessed and reported the event. There aren’t any details on whether the apparition spoke, smiled, or called out as Biblical Scripture records God doing to Moses from the burning bush on Mount Horeb. One thing that can be surmised from both occurrences is that a common reaction to experiencing the supernatural is fear. Moses hid his face and Fortune ran away in fear straight to the police. In Fortune’s account, he and said police officer returned to the site finding a portrait of the Virgin Mary embedded on a leaf of the palm tree where the apparition was seen.

The saga continues forty years after the sighting with the apparition-stained palm tree being cut down by French missionary Father Lovenual. He wanted to absolve what he considered the locus for superstitious practices in the land and establish a foundational Biblical approach to life. That action didn’t go so well as he died the same day, passing out and losing consciousness whilst at church. The talk of the town was that his death served as punishment for what many deemed a sacrilegious act of cutting the tree down. His actions and subsequent death only intensified homage being paid to the location as one with supernatural powers capable of healing, delivering curses, and granting blessings.

Following the death of Father Lovenual, another palm tree in the vicinity sprouted out instantaneously. It became what the natives described as the spirits intended replacement for the worship of the Virgin Mary of Mount Caramel. So, the sentimental significance that the location gained from the apparition appearance narrative was maintained. It wasn’t long before another priest, Father Cessens, sought to prove otherwise by cutting it down. He suffered a similar fate as Lovenual. A stroke left him paralyzed and he died a few months after his stint as a self-proclaimed arborist. There’s no mention of any pre-existing medical condition in discussions of his death. Only solidification of Valle de Saut-d’Eau as a holy land accepted by the Haitian government, natives, tourists, and the Catholic church.

So, it goes without saying that Valle de Saut-d’Eau was already a hot spot for spiritual mysticism long before the dragon shenanigans became a thing in the 21st century. Its reputation made it prime real estate for anyone or thing wanting to home in on the supernatural energy of the area. The cognitive dissonance of the devout, religiously blinded Catholics blamed the new addition of the never satiated fire-breathing beasts on the satanic Vodou practices of the natives. It didn’t matter that the portrait of the dragon apparition embedded on the palm tree was the very same picture of the Virgin Mary known to the world. The image was simply turned upside down.

Those affected, disturbed, or influenced by this revelation, suffered from unbearable denial, and went to extreme measures to eradicate what was described as evil works tainting the land. It didn't help that Saut-d'Eau #dragontales was trending all over the internet. The waterfalls and surrounding area remained closed to the public following the mysterious incidents that occurred. The practice of Vodou was outlawed by the government and an ordinance was enacted stating any practitioner of the faith would be exiled if found conducting any ceremonies or rituals. Things went a step further with the changing of the existing penal codes for abortion and homosexuality making conviction of both punishable by death. The Catholic church described these measures as a long-overdue righteous step in the nation making amends for its history of sin.

Access to the waterfalls was allowed just before the annual feast of Our Lady of Mount Caramel. The entire area of trees and bushes where the dragon legion apparition and scripture appeared was not only cut to the ground but the soil was also burnt to a crisp. This worried the locals who were all too familiar with the story of the two priests and their demise two centuries prior. It came as no surprise when chaos broke out on the seventeenth of July during the feast at the local church in Ville-Bonheur. The gut-wrenching screams could be heard throughout the entire town and echoed at the waterfalls. An electrical fire tore through the church with rage, claiming the lives of more than seventy people. The flames of the fire could be seen for miles and miles. As the fire subsided, a heavy chill of terror and knowing respect descended on every onlooker as they watched the smoke form into clouds distinctly resembling a legion of dragons. Time stood still as each dragon-shaped smoke cloud hovered sinisterly over the entire Valle de Saut-d’Eau then slowly moved about towards the falls. It was as if they were always there.