What I Learned From the Total Eclipse

Our grassmates from the U.S. Virgin Islands took a nice picture of us as we awaited complete totality.

WHAT I LEARNED FROM THE TOTAL ECLIPSE

My astronomer husband has planned this trip for a loooooong time. A looooong time. Several years in fact. He’s taken seminars on how to capture the eclipse. He’s gone through practice runs. We packed up the kids for a long trip to Carbondale, a short stay, and a lot of photography – after all, the total eclipse is nothing short of miraculous, and we were going to get to the path of totality, no matter what.

After consulting with a meteorologist and claiming a place of grass for our telescope base and cameras (with approved filters, of course), we relaxed a bit and waited.  It was oppressively hot, so I took the kids inside to swim with some girls that they had met. At the right time, we went outside. We watched the progression of the eclipse in various ways – a couple of times we looked through a Coronado solar telescope courtesy of our grassmates from the Virgin Islands. We stood in awe of the eclipse through our own solar glasses. We watched it appear through a pinhole projector. We tried a Ritz cracker – and a couple from Door County brought a Pringles can projector. It was exciting.

And then we waited for totality….

And then a giant cloud came up rapidly to cover our view – for the entirety of totality. There were collective gasps, some tears and a lot of disbelief that those who had traveled so far, prepared so much and waited patiently for the corona would not see it. So, no photos of totality here, but, our kids did get to experience totality – the eerie darkness, the birds chirping, a dark shadow cast over the earth during midday, the glorious 360-degree sunrise and sunset bathing the entire city as far as the eye could see. It was amazing ~ I get chills just thinking about what we were able to experience with all of our senses.

With all of nature’s beauty on display, I was sorely disappointed that we did not come away with any totality photos, but I did come away with a lesson.

As a photographer, I am always experiencing life through the lens – always. I bring my camera everywhere. I’ve been known to leave places just to get my camera  ~ and, more often than not, I don’t leave home without it.

But in the path of totality, God gave me no photography opportunity. He forced me to experience the ephemeral moment with all of my senses – and not just behind the camera lens. I have only my experience to prove that I was there. He firmly demonstrated that He is in control – and I am not.

But He also gave me the opportunity to witness the beauty of humanity.

Despite the heavy sorrow amongst the crowd that was under that one cloud in Carbondale, everyone we met – whether the hotel staff, locals or visitors from Denmark, Japan, the U.S. Virgin Islands, New York, Chicago or Michigan – everyone was so nice. It was not the chaos I had anticipated. Even those who had gone to other locations and returned with amazing photographs were genuinely sorry that others had missed it. From the fun and friendly owners of Top Notch Tees who sold eclipse shirts (and then drove back to deliver our girls' shirts the next day) to the waitstaff at Manny's who brewed me fresh iced tea just because, we were touched by the kindness of those around us. 

There was sadness, of course, but the gift we gave our children was to be able to experience an incredibly brief moment in time and allow science to mesmerize them. And we were given a gift in return. As a family, we made what I hope will be lifelong friends in the meantime.  Yes, eclipse chasing at its finest came when our girls’ path crossed with the girls of another family who had traveled with parents and grandparents for this long-awaited total eclipse. Together we endured the heat, got our children excited about the once-in-a-lifetime event, prepared our gear to capture the moment and together we experienced totality in a way we didn’t expect. I couldn’t have imagined that we’d find people who were so genuinely kind and who made us feel as though we’d known them forever.

If we had to miss complete totality, I’m so thankful we missed it with so many truly gracious and kind people.

Here’s to 2024, fellow eclipse-chasers!

Shadows in the shape of crescents during the eclipse

My astrophotographer husband was excited to be surrounded by other astronomers and photographers from around the world, capturing this incredible moment.

The moon is quickly overtaking the sun ... but the cloud was quicker ~ this is the last image we have before the only cloud in Carbondale (and it was a big one) closed in on our view. 

The streets of Carbondale at 1:20 p.m., just as the darkness surrounded us and the streetlights went on!

Well, we knew the Diamond Ring and Bailey's Beads were hidden from our cameras by the giant cloud, so we captured ourselves in the midday darkness.

Family-owned Top Notch Tees came around to sell eclipse shirts, which was great because once we had the perfect parking space, we didn’t move our car for 24 hours! They were friendly and so sweet. They went above-and-beyond by coming back to deliver shirts in my girls’ sizes – on the day of the eclipse. Check them out if you need custom-made gear!

Best Western Saluki Inn was amazing! All of my expectations were exceeded – the room was clean and comfortable. The staff was friendly and helpful. The breakfast was lovely, too.