Kissing Johnny Depp

The evening before the solar eclipse I talked to a man who came from California to Nebraska to see it in totality. He told me about watching a solar eclipse in Hawaii next to the hot flowing lava of a volcano. "The lava was nothing compared to the totality of the eclipse. It is the single most spectacular event in nature I've ever seen."

Oh, so I guess it's worth me driving an hour and a half to Alliance to see it? Let me get in my van and do this thing.

Since we were going to Alliance, I really wanted to watch the solar event at Carhenge. Carhenge makes me laugh. And I like to think of the people who created Stonehenge and tracked the astronomical events, maybe even watching their own solar ecplise, and I feel connected to humanity in a tribal way. But the connection comes with satire, because, cars stacked in representation of gigantic pagan stones. It's funny, people. Turns out, I was one of many who thought watching the eclipse at this location would be a good idea. Including the likes of Johnny Depp and Harrison Ford.

I didn't see them, but I am sure they were looking for me. Had we run across each other our encounter would have been something like this.

Johnny: "Hey, aren't you that girl who writes the blog The Galloping Equine?"
Me: "Close enough Johnny Depp, let's make out."
Johnny: "Isn't that your husband right there?"
Me: "Oh, yeah, but he's cool with it, because we will be acting. We'll film it on an iPhone and call it art, and we are characters. I'll be me, and you be Gilbert on What's Eating Gilbert Grape. Do NOT, I repeat, do not be Willie Wonka." I start rethinking this entire encounter because kissing Willie Wonka would be the worst. Johnny busts out his Captian Jack Sparrow accent, and that will do.
My kids: "Go mom!"
My husband: "I feel so weird right now." Ian holds his stomach and tries to look away. He can't, but he tries. "If I concentrate hard enough can I make it stop?" Ian asks the man next to him.
Harrison Ford: "That's not how the force works."

Our outings are usually insanely spontaneous, and this last minute trip was no exception. When we got to Carhenge, paid the farmer who brilliantly rented out his field for $20 a parking spot and thanked his great, great grandfather for picking this field to grow his wheat in, we realized we were going to be hanging out for a few hours and we were going to need to sit down. We had two towels from a previous swimming trip, and a strawberry shortcake blanket that one of our children cuddled up with. We grabbed those things, and they were our sitting on things. I also had some skittles, pretzels, Triscuits, and licorice left over from my driving adventure home from Park City, UT. Lunch. Also, Cassie left her waterbottles in the condo, so I had those in my trunk, too. Hydration.

Behind us on our spot on the grass were six college boys. They made the experience. One of them had a fantastic playlist with Star Wars soundtrack, Bohemian Rhapsody, Sweet Caroline, Hey Jude, and more quality tunage. My family hung out, my two little kids running in circles around us, applying and reapplying sunscreen, eating skittles, and falling ardently in love with the college boys behind us. We see people dressed as aliens, deer, and hippies.  We sing along to all the great music. With our tinfoil glasses, we look up at the sun as a black circle moves slowly across it, changing the sun's shape from a banana, to an emoji smile, to a crescent. "Boo!" we yell when the clouds cover the sun.

Then totality is about to occur. "Moon, moon, moon" we shout with our fists raised high. We hear the meadowlarks, and feel the temperature drop significantly as the moon completely covers the sun. The horizon glows pink everywhere---360 degrees. I see Venus. It's so bright. I can see plane lights, and jet trails that were hidden before. A woman to my right yells,"This is so amazing!" every thirty seconds. I feel exhilarated. In the middle of the day, I am feeling a sunrise. My body reacts. Johnny Depp is nowhere to be seen, so I kiss my gorgeous husband, like it is New Year's Eve and the ball has dropped. It feels like the start of something new, and completely magical.

While, amazing, I did not share the view of the man from California. It was not the most spectacular natural event I've ever experienced. Giving birth is the most spectacular event of nature I've ever been a part of. But the totality of the solar eclipse was breathtaking. The feeling I had while watching was comparable to watching the hundreds balloons take flight at the Albuquerque Hot Air balloon festival, and the sandhill cranes fill the sky at the same moment in the Bosque Del Apache at sunrise, and a meteor shower at White Sands. Nature is amazing, and it helps me feel my place.

My place is small, but beautiful.