I must have been in grade school when I stood in my backyard staring into a bucket of water so I could safely see a partial eclipse. It was exciting to see something that movies at the time depicted as having been used to manipulate primitive peoples by folks who had science on their side.
But now I must admit that even before the amazing event I'm pretty burned out on the daily update on eclipse glasses availability at locations that never seems to be in my part of the county anyway. Yes. yes. I still think it interesting and educational, but I got a giggle by a scholarly article warning solemnly that children, especially small children, might find all the hype has not prepared them to stand quietly for the less than two minutes of the total eclipse (at about
1:08 p.m.), much less the slow pace of the full eclipse experience which runs from 11:40 a.m. to 2:36 p.m.
And I admit I hope there is not any news from the other continents today since I doubt there will be much time for coverage. You see, this eclipse is an almost wholly North American, in fact an almost wholly United States of America mainland event.* I'm hearing it will be an economic success for many "in the path".
But all this leads me to think about other issues. A solar eclipse is not about the sun doing anything, but rather about a smaller orb getting between the sun's light and warmth and those of us that rely on that light and warmth. And I am amazed by how often I allow something small to get between me and something more important in the larger scheme of things.
So today I hope we all heed the warnings and come away with no vision damage, make a memory of folks being kind to one another as they share a common and rare experience, and experience people driving with care!
Creator of this World, this Universe, thank you for this amazing Earth and solar system with all its delightful features and our capacity to enjoy and share and learn together. AMEN
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* South America from San Juan to Buenos Ares in Argentina gets their total eclipse on July 2, 2018. Do you think our news community will cover that?
But now I must admit that even before the amazing event I'm pretty burned out on the daily update on eclipse glasses availability at locations that never seems to be in my part of the county anyway. Yes. yes. I still think it interesting and educational, but I got a giggle by a scholarly article warning solemnly that children, especially small children, might find all the hype has not prepared them to stand quietly for the less than two minutes of the total eclipse (at about
1:08 p.m.), much less the slow pace of the full eclipse experience which runs from 11:40 a.m. to 2:36 p.m.
And I admit I hope there is not any news from the other continents today since I doubt there will be much time for coverage. You see, this eclipse is an almost wholly North American, in fact an almost wholly United States of America mainland event.* I'm hearing it will be an economic success for many "in the path".
But all this leads me to think about other issues. A solar eclipse is not about the sun doing anything, but rather about a smaller orb getting between the sun's light and warmth and those of us that rely on that light and warmth. And I am amazed by how often I allow something small to get between me and something more important in the larger scheme of things.
So today I hope we all heed the warnings and come away with no vision damage, make a memory of folks being kind to one another as they share a common and rare experience, and experience people driving with care!
Creator of this World, this Universe, thank you for this amazing Earth and solar system with all its delightful features and our capacity to enjoy and share and learn together. AMEN
------------------------------
* South America from San Juan to Buenos Ares in Argentina gets their total eclipse on July 2, 2018. Do you think our news community will cover that?
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