Have you ever had one of those days that seemed so obvious God planned it just for you? It is a day that seems like every prayer or heart’s desire for the day is answered. Well I had one on 4/8/2024, the day of the Solar Eclipse!
Background
In 2017 when we had the Great North American Solar eclipse, I was relatively new to my place of work. I had also found out so short notice of the celestial event, I didn’t feel there was time to plan. So I missed driving just a few short hours from home to witness Totality. I was satisfied with the knowledge that April 2024 would bring a second chance.
The Present Situation
Fast forward 7 years. I had totally forgotten about the solar eclipse, AGAIN! Then some ladies from my Bible study group brought it up. I panicked. Once again, I found out short notice. AAAND the nearest viewing for totality was in OHIO! That was a 7 hour drive away! Worst of all the entire eclipse path only had between 30-60% chance of clear skies. Cleveland, Ohio being the closest and best opportunity at 56%.
So I had resigned to the idea that I would not get to mark this event off on my bucket list. The thought kept eating at me though. Seven hours one way wasn’t too bad. Our family specializes in Bonzai trips. The kids could miss a day of school…. So I decided to go after all.
Prepping To Go
I started prepping for the adventure. It was far too late to order any viewing glasses, so I made cereal box viewers. Cereal box viewers are a great last minute way to witness a solar eclipse and easy to make. It was with great sadness that I would not witness the event with my own eyes. At least I could experience Totality which I had always heard was eerie. I even made the kids and I our own Total Eclipse T-shirts to commemorate the event using this tutorial.
Some friends had warned us about their trip back. In 2017, their 3 hour drive home doubled from 3 to 6 hours long. They said after the eclipse everyone filled the highways causing complete gridlock. So prepare for that. THAT started to worry me. Doubling a 7 hour trip would be a nightmare!
The day before the big trip arrived. The car was packed with a cooler, breakfasts, lunches, snacks, drinks and viewers. I had my Total Eclipse Website with Linked Maps to Nasa. I was ready…sort of. This was going to be a long day and the hubby wasn’t able to come. At least my daughter had her driver’s permit so she could help with driving.
Was this crazy? Was I about to drive over 14 hours round trip for 3 minutes of Totality with cloudy skies? Well, when doubts set in, I did what I always do, I prayed. I asked for at least 30 minutes of clear skies; so I could witness the amazing celestial timing He had created. And for no traffic jams. I asked for safe travels. Then I went to sleep.
“And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.”
Luke 11:9-10
4:15am
My alarm went off and I was up. I grabbed the T-shirts for the kids and went in and woke them up. Told them to get dressed and to wear this T-shirt. Then I told them to grab their pillows and blankets and head to the car. They listened remarkably well. I dressed, gave the hubby a kiss and we were in the car pulling out at 5:am on the nose. The adventure was on!
I will not bore you with the details of the drive. The kids were asleep for most of the 7 hour trip. Waking only to use the restroom when I would stop for gas or to stretch my legs.
Getting Close
My goal was to avoid driving all the way in to Cleveland if I could help it, because that would be a traffic nightmare in the end. My daughter was awake now and I was having her check weather maps. Skies were partly cloudy but surprisingly sunny for Ohio. As we neared the Total Eclipse zone, which started in North Canton, we were low on gas. I didn’t want to stop in North Canton because three would only be 1 minute of totality. The closer you get to the center of the zone the more time with Totality. We kept driving.
We got through Akron, and were about an hour outside of Cleveland’s City Center. I NEEDED gas. I pulled off on a “random” exit to get gas. Fairlawn, a suburb of Akron is where we stopped. I checked the Totality Map. We would get 3 minutes and 10 seconds of totality. Skies appeared good despite the bleak 34% chance of clear skies predicted. I decided we would find some place here to watch. Totality wasn’t going to start until 3:13 and it was only noon. So we looked for someplace to park and wait. I used maps to find where the nearest park would be. There was one 4 minutes away with a playground. So we went there.
Waiting for the Main Event
We enjoyed our lunches and my son enjoyed playing on the playground. He definitely had some energy to burn off. My daughter and I just enjoyed the sunshine while sitting on a bench. Then the most amazing thing happened. A gentleman from a solar panel company came walking through the park with NASA approved solar eclipse glasses and asked the folks in the park if they would like some. (Thank you, God!) Now I could watch the Solar Eclipse with my own eyes. Although I didn’t pray for that one, he knew my heart and provided it for me.
Waiting for an eclipse is much like watching a pot boil. You can see progress for a LONG TIME before you get to that moment!
Eclipse at Last
The sky begins to darken little by little as we get closer and closer to totality. Which is what everyone everywhere else was experiencing as well. Some dogs nearby started to howl. But then it happens, the moon completely obstructs the view of the sun and you see the Total Eclipse.
At the moment of Totality everyone cheers in unison. Then silence. The birds stop making noise, the animals all go quiet, and even the breeze that had been blowing all afternoon stopped. For 3 minutes and 10 seconds we stood there in that park looking around at how eerie it all was. In the distance it looked like sunset on the horizon, but there in the park it was night. (Like a night with a full moon.)
And then just like that it was over. The sky seemed to brighten much faster than it did to darken. We stuck around for about 15 more minutes. Then we got on the road knowing that we had another 7 hour drive ahead of us.
The Return Home
It was 3:30pm when we got back on the road. We had 2 major cities to get through, Akron and Canton. So far we were in luck. No rush hour traffic. We stopped outside of Canton and switched drivers. The eclipse was completely over by now as it was 4:30pm.
The final event of the day came in Charleston, WV. We had been cruising along missing all traffic this entire trip, and then it happened…evening construction gridlock. NOOOOOO! We were still so far from home! I watched the time on my GPS start clicking up. We weren’t going to get home until midnight now. Then my daughter became rather disturbed by the pick-up truck behind us that stopped moving. I told her not worry about him just be glad we were ahead of him. More distance passed and then we noticed the 18 wheeler in the lane next to us had also stopped. The two of them had created a rolling roadblock.
The significance? They had created enough space that all the cars in front of them were able to merge into one lane without drivers from the back of the line flying up and cutting people off creating a worse jam. We were through the construction zone in less than 10 minutes and I watched as our arrival time for home went back down to 11:pm. Once again, God intervened and answered a prayer. I thanked Him in the moment.
“Trust in Him at all times, you people; Pour out your hearts before Him; God is a refuge for us.”
Psalms 62: 8
We were exhausted when we got home from the long drive. But it was TOTALLY worth it. Even the kids agreed it was the coolest thing ever. And the best part was, I enjoyed a very beautiful day created just for me by my Amazingly Awesome God. What an intimate moment with the Creator!!
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