You "Totality" Had To Be There

“Two out of every five residents in the United States lives within a 4-hour drive to totality. ”

— Eryl Cochran

Today my son and I got to witness the once in a lifetime total eclipse with my mom and dad in Columbia, South Carolina. Neither words, pictures or video can describe that moment when everything went dark and we were able to take our glasses off. I almost cried. 

If you don't get that, you really had to be there. While the majority of the country could view a partial eclipse, it was just that. Partial. And you could never take your glasses off. For 2 minutes 05.3 seconds here in Columbia, South Carolina, we were able to take our glasses off and view the awesomeness.

It had grown quiet in the neighborhood and we ohh-ed and aah-ed as the shimmer of the sun behind the moon made the driveway dance with sparkles. Daddy howled, and we heard fireworks in the distance. My nose burned. I almost cried.

It was beautiful. 

I recorded this video from my parents front yard, from 1:19 pm to 4:06 pm EST and then chose a smaller window to share in a 38s time-lapse video.

That Moment When It Got Dark

I saw a lot of cranky pants posts about all the underwhelming eclipse photo shares. You really had to be there, and for the year/week that we've had, it was nice to see people gathered together all on one accord to participate in an historic event. It made my heart happy. 

I can't wait for the documentaries. The local news here talked about the animals at the zoo. Two seals who had been playing, went completely still. The gorillas lined up like it was time to go in for the night. The young chimps ran back and forth, the flamingos huddled together and the zebras decided to lay down. 

People who flew in here from other countries or drove down from Northern states said, "It was totally worth it." 

We may not see an eclipse like this again in our lifetime. On August 21, 2017, I can say I was there, with my mom, dad and my son.