Eclipse

In about five hours Norwegians living on the Faroe Islands (Sting sang about them) or the Svalbard Archipelago (Sting didn't sing about those) will get to witness a total solar eclipse. Americans can substitute viewing the celestial phenomenon with overzealous playing of "Total Eclipse of the Heart." All is not lost, tomorrow is still a Supermoon and the Vernal Equinox. Atmospheric trifecta!

I remember the solar eclipse of May 10, 1994. I was a soon-to-be graduating senior wearing overalls, Keds, and special glasses for staring at the sun. I took this picture of the crescent-shaped shadows the eclipse made with my Olympus point-and-shoot film camera complete with date stamp. I have never forgotten how the solar eclipse made happy, smiling shadows. I tore my house apart to find this old photo. It was in the "not important enough to do anything with but not unimportant enough to throw away" pile of papers in an accordion file in the linen closet. Where else would it have been?

A total solar eclipse is when the moon comes between the earth and the sun and completely covers the sun's disc. It is a black hole surrounded by a ring of fire. (Johnny Cash) The only time our naked human eyes can safely observe the sun without damaging our retinas is during a total solar eclipse. Is it odd we can only behold the universe-controlling, nuclear-fusioning bomb of glory when a Superdarkness gets in the way?

I have loved ones going through hard times; eclipses of a sort. My own life's eclipse is still at arm's length and I can recall its disparity with Memory's flash. The thing of it is...it was the closest I ever felt to God the Father and His Son. Eclipses make happy shadows, remember? I absolutely know this to be true: sometimes it takes joy-eclipsing dark spells for us to be capable of witnessing the light and love of God. The protective, stunning window is brief so take a mental picture and keep it someplace safe.

Heard on the radio; also something I believe:

What seems difficult just takes time.

What seems impossible takes a little more time.