What a magical adventure we had. Everything went even better than I had hoped as we traveled to Antlers, OK to be in totality of the eclipse.
Three of my best friends and I left yesterday afternoon and drove to McAlester, OK and spent the night at a hotel there. The room was clean and quiet and there was a good seafood restaurant right next door where we had dinner.
We got up this morning and went to Jimmy’s Egg and had a delicious breakfast. We had a very efficient waitress and enjoyed a good breakfast. It was only five minutes from our hotel.
We then drove to Antlers, OK. You could tell traffic was heavier than normal driving to Antlers but there was no slow down until we reached town and a stop light. We didn’t have to go all the way through town as we turned off to go to our host family.
We had a beautiful spot to sit out and watch the eclipse with the nicest hostess you could ask for. Her sister and brother-in-law were there too. They welcomed us and made us feel right at home.
We were on the outskirts of town and had a big, beautiful yard to sit in. Her neighbor is a paramedic in town and he came over and invited us to use his front yard if we needed it too. Our hostess had two cats and five dogs and one of the cats got lots of extra love from our group today.
We had a picnic lunch in the yard as we waited for the eclipse to begin. The cloud cover came and went and gave our necks a break occasionally. When it was time for totality the clouds disappeared so we got to see the moon fully cover the sun. It got dark enough we saw a star. It didn’t get as dark as I had anticipated but it was so cool to watch the moon over the sun. Totality lasted for almost two minutes and then it got bright out again.
We stayed for about 30 more minutes and then decided to leave to beat the traffic out of town. It took us a bit to pack up and say our thanks and goodbyes.
Traffic coming out of Antlers was heavy but except for a couple of places moved along. We had stop and go traffic three times the whole trip home and those periods only lasted for five or ten minutes. It was way easier coming home than I had feared it might be.
We got home around 9:00 tonight which was way earlier than I anticipated we would arrive. I’m grateful we got home at a decent time. I’m tired tonight and am hoping I will sleep good tonight.
This trip could not have gone any smoother. Our hostess was perfect for our group. All of us felt like we made a new friend. I wished we lived closer so she could be part of our quarterly equinox and solstice group. She would fit right in.
We both said it was a great lesson on trust for both sides. We trusted she would be the perfect hostess for us and she trusted we would be the perfect guests for her. She is normally a very private person and offering to open her house to us was way out of the normal for her. We all decided there was a higher power at play here and there was a greater purpose than we know now that brought us all together.
This will be a trip that I will remember for a very long time. It felt magical and divinely guided and inspired.
Grateful for a safe journey, grateful to have made a new friend, and grateful for the companionship of my friends that journeyed with me.