Eclipse Day 2017 With My Besties

Before the euphoria fades, Eclipse Day 2017 goes down as one of the best days with my girlfriends, my Besties. We indulged ourselves with a precious day on the shore of Lake Michigan by the Michigan Dunes.

In our forties and fifties, we are a congruous squad who have raised children, now adults, and are fully engaged in work and family matters. We go full force, typically seven days a week with responsibility, but occasionally we do outings like this to commune and recharge. And this trip with its adventures, laughs, sunshine, sand, and the restorative powers of swimming, relaxing, and enjoying nature by the lake was entirely satisfying.

Being Eclipse Day made it even more special. We shunned the circuses and crowds but chose to observe how the sun dialed down its intensity, as though it was nearing sunset, albeit it was mid-day. The gulls soared in flight making circles by the outcrop of trees where they nest, and the temperature and waves calmed some as we intuited that the eclipse had begun, for we had not purchased special glasses.

Instead, we briefly shot indirect pictures of the sun behind our heads using camera phones with no filters trying to see any changes. We really didn’t get more than some diffuse clouds, rainbow and orbital rings around the sun in our images; but as some people did offer to share with us a glimpse through their poster board framed eclipse glasses, we saw the amazing image of the dark moon’s shadow overlapping the brilliant sun.

We appreciated the power of that celestial body, and it gave us a greater perspective to realize that while our retinas could easily be damaged by directly gazing at the sun, our skins are so very protective of that same amount of exposure to radiation. All creation is truly a miracle.

In connecting with the universe and acknowledging its Creator, I am healed, renewed; and after posting this as a reminder of the true reality, I will go back to racing through my work projects because tomorrow I head off to learn about a halal dairy brand in Wisconsin.