The Eclipse

 For almost a year I have been planning on being in the path of totality for the solar eclipse.  I heard that it is something worth seeing and secretly hoped that we would be all settled in and living in Oregon.  As the date got closer I was more and more depressed that we still didn't have a home.  Mom and I decided that we were going to make the trip to Idaho Falls to see it.  The news made it sound like it was going to be a nightmare and the closer it got the more nervous I was, but I felt in my bones that I would never recover if I didn't get there.
So that is how we found ourselves setting an alarm for 2:45 AM and hopping in the car at 3.  We had all our food packed and enough water to last us a week.  The traffic was fine, still busy for the middle of the night, but not the apocalypse.
The Idaho Falls website had listed 4 parks that were being designated for public viewing.  I picked one that had 12 soccer fields and was out by the airport.  I figured that even if the crowds were ridiculous it would take a whole lot of people to fill 12 soccer fields.   We got there right around 6 and the place was deserted.
We had a lovely morning.  We ate yogurt and donuts and watched the sunrise.  We went for a walk, played on the playground, read some stories, and played UNO.  It was one of those special moments where I had the time to just enjoy being with my two oldest daughters and my mom.

 As the morning started to shift into the afternoon more people started showing up.  We were a small but excited group.  Everyone was friendly and cheerful.  There was a group of international students who were throwing Frisbees all the way to some serious astronomers with huge telescopes.
And before we knew it, it had begun.  We laid out our blankets and watched through our special glasses as the sun appeared to eat the moon.

 It was cool.
We were having a great time watching something so interesting.
And then it got closer to totality and it felt like the whole world went haywire.
All of a sudden it was freezing and dark.
I had heard that there would be a moment that it looked like a 360 degree sunset.  I took off my glasses and there it was.  A pink glow all the way around.  We were in the perfect place because it was a wide open clear view.  The feeling was eerie.  I put my glasses back on, but then I couldn't see anything, and then I heard cheering.  I took them off and there it was.

 There is no way to describe how it looked.  It was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen.  It was much brighter and so much bigger than I had anticipated.  I could see Venus which looked like a bright star.  And then I could see the corona which was beautiful.  And there were these giant blue rays coming all around.
It is impossible to describe.
It was breathtaking.  I was bawling and cheering and laughing at the same time.  It was cosmic and miraculous and I still get goosebumps when I think about it.
And then just as quickly as it started, it was gone.

I feel like the eclipse was a turning point in my life.  I know how ridiculous that sounds, but it feels like truth to me.  Observing something so universal made me feel small and insignificant in a good way.  How does that even make sense?  It doesn't, but that is the only way I can explain what I mean.  It just helped to put things into perspective.  My worries about the job hunt and schools just didn't seem as all encompassing anymore.  I had the feeling that no matter where we end up going or what we end up doing, it is all okay because there is something bigger than all of us, and it is incredible.

 God is great and everything is eventually going to be fine, for everyone.

It took us 6 hours to get home because of all the traffic but I would have driven across the whole country to see it again.

I will always treasure this memory.  The time with my girls and my mom when we got to experience something truly remarkable.