Monday, August 21, 2017

IN the Path of Totality




First I want to state something:  For those who see nothing special about a total eclipse and say "ho hum", please do not poop on my parade.  I found it breath taking.  To me it was a big deal.  Go somewhere else to ho hum and leave my little high alone.  Thank you. I respect your choice to brush it aside and I appreciate your respecting my choice to have this emotional, romantic experience that the universe has gifted.  

From the venue (Serenity Valley Winery outisde of Fulton, MO. ) to the friendly people to the nature and beauty of the universe, I am humbled to have been able to be on the path of totality and experience the total solar eclipse with a rather intimate group (compared to what were evidently crowds elsewhere) of human beings that also gasped in awe at the universe's show of power.  Pretty darned cool!!  

I chose to arrive a couple of days early in order to be relaxed and to get familiar with the surroundings of the 60 acre winery.  It was my last summer trip for this year.  I am glad I chose the easy slower pace of the extra couple of  days.  

There are a lot of things I have done and experienced in my lifetime and this experience is right up there with the births of my beautiful loved children.  

When Bailey's beads appeared I sucked in my breath and almost forgot to breathe out until I let out a stunned 'wow'.  The diamond ring prior to that was distinct which signaled the soon to come totality.
Immediately upon hitting totality the glasses came off.  Two minutes and 36 seconds might at certain times seem so very long (like during hard labor, lol) but in this case it just seemed like it was not long enough.  I sat with head back looking up, hands open but for thumbs to pointy fingers on the arms of my chairs and I simply inhaled and exhaled slow while letting go of this ridiculous human world and soaring on the cosmic winds.  

Before the eclipse even started and right after I had set my stuff up I was quietly chatting with a man who had set up a telescope and camera when suddenly a gorgeous bald eagle floated by on a breeze.  I stopped mi sentnece and he looked up as well.  It just seemed like it was all perfectly orhcestrated to set the scene and the pace.  

I now sit back in my hotel room, having finished a spicey chicken ceasar salad, sipping a last glass of wine trying to decide if I should shower to wash off the eclipse dust and human sweat before napping.  HAH HAH!  Driving back here I listend to the album by the Moody Blues: Days of Future Passed.  To me perfect ending music to an amazing adventure.

There was something quite spiritual for me in this experience as there has been with only a very few other past experiences of which at the top are the births of my children.  I am humbled, blessed and reminded that LOVE is just ever so amazing all by itself.  

(The next several days I am going to be dowloading my photos from the SD card and carefully culling then saving the choices and  captioning them.)