We all had that one fixation that defined our personalities in our youth. Mine, like many others’, was the cosmos. I spent countless hours learning about the nebulae in the Orion constellation, the fascinating fates of stars, and the asteroids beyond our own solar system (Pluto is not a planet!). However, I never wanted to be an astronaut. My dream was to one day witness a solar eclipse in totality—something that felt so close to home yet simultaneously so out of reach, something that felt like a legend to me. Well, on April 8, 2024, I was able to fulfill one of my childhood dreams.
The stars literally aligned.

Not to be dramatic, but it was one of the best moments of my
life, and I think about it more than I'd care to admit. Blanketed
in a crisp shadow of platinum, the hundreds of voices populating Port Rowan came to a collective gasp—and then silence.
Nothing but the echoing calls of confused birds as the moon devoured the sun.

The experience of eclipse totality is something I find difficult
to put into words. Fortunately, I stumbled upon a piece
written by Tyler Nordgren, a professional astronomer and artist, who captured it perfectly in his article "What Our Souls Can
See in an Eclipse's Darkness." He touches upon the qualia
of this experience: from the drop in temperature and the panoramic sunset to the profound sense of connection—not
only to each other, but to the entire universe.

Nordgren’s writing, along with my own divine experience with totality, inspired this piece.