Several weeks ago, I had the unique opportunity of experiencing the eclipse that crossed over the United States. In order to be within the path of totality, we traveled from Minnesota to Missouri. Although I was excited for the trip, I wasn’t completely convinced totality would be much of a memorable experience. Additionally, I was anxious about navigating the predicted crowds and anticipated traffic, and worried about all the little things that could go wrong. When the trip finally arrived, what I didn’t expect was being surprised by the unexpected joy from the collective excitement of the moment. I was happily caught off guard by the enthusiasm of the crowd of strangers observing the eclipse together.

The park we chose was not as crowded as some locations within the path of totality, but there were still at least several hundred people gathered. We settled onto a picnic bench that ended up being our home base for the next six hours. I was so relieved to have gotten to our anticipated location without too much fuss. Initially, I didn’t think much about the eclipse itself or really even key into the growing number of people around us; however, as the moon slowly made its way across the sun, I was aware of an increasing excitement buzzing throughout the park. As we all took moments to put on our eclipse glasses and glance at the sun to note the progression, there was perceptible excitement as the coverage became more prominent. In the seconds leading up to totality the energy was palpable and when it actually occurred, a spontaneous cheer arose from the crowd. It’s difficult to articulate how neat an experience it was to listen to the awe and excitement of complete strangers united together in a common experience of an inspirational natural wonder.

Of course, the day wasn’t without some drama. There were explicit grumbles from people impatiently waiting for a shuttle to bring us from the parking area to the designated viewing area. The traffic was insane. And, the summer-like weather wore everyone down with sunburns and overheating. At times I found myself feeling nervous being in a crowd with hundreds of strangers. I know that large crowds can be finicky and unpredictable, and my anxiety was confirmed by the presence of law enforcement that continually made their check-in rounds throughout the day. But despite all this, for the four minutes of totality, all my worries and irritation of being surrounded by hundreds of strangers disappeared. For four minutes, we were all in complete amazement together.

Afterward I was reminiscing about the day with my family, and my sister observed that partly the joy and awe of the crowd felt so unique because there haven’t been a lot of positive collective group moments in recent years. It’s true. There’s something surprisingly delightful in experiencing a positive moment with a group of strangers. And, in particular this event felt extra special as it wasn’t even orchestrated or controlled by people. To look around and realize the group likely had very little in common, and yet for a moment, differences were set aside as everyone shared in the excitement of the event, this realization provided a strange sense of joy. I couldn’t help but marvel at the uniqueness of the group and a walk through the crowd highlighted a surprising range of visible differences just within our several hundred gathered in the rural park. It occurred to me that we likely wouldn’t have gathered as a collective group for any other particular reason. This just added to the joy I felt in being part of this experience, where despite all our varying differences, we were united in our excitement for a natural occurrence in which all we could do was simply observe and enjoy the moment together.

On the way back home I was thinking about the pure joy I felt in the collective excitement during the eclipse, and it reminded me, in some ways, of a naturalization ceremony I had the privilege of attending several months ago. For a completely different reason, in a completely different context, I was surrounded by several hundred strangers. We watched as the oath of US citizenship was taken. Being surrounded by these amazing individuals, while they were supported by the presence of their family and friends, was truly an unforgettable experience. Again, it was a collection of a diverse range of people from literally all over the world, gathered in a relatively small space and held in common by one goal. I was overcome with emotion when the judge administering the oath welcomed and congratulated the new citizens and everyone cheered and clapped in enthusiastic support. In that context, we were again celebrating together, filling a space with joy and excitement, differences temporarily set aside.

I think that is what was so special about the unity of the collective excitement in both experiences, for a moment not only were differences seemingly put on hold, but everything seemed to be suspended on hold. For a moment, I was able to forget about the all-consuming sorrows and difficulties, differences, frustrations and irritation over the usual schisms that divide, and was surprised by what was revealed: an unexpected unity of joy in collective excitement.

There was power in those moments, where it felt we were all able to set aside our own preoccupations and convictions, ideologies and identities and instead simply be a part of something larger than us. The connected joy may be because it was a fleeting moment that we realized we had to pause and just observe. Maybe it was because we allowed space for a tiny moment of reprieve from all that divides and instead just appreciated collectively an experience of pure awe. Maybe part of the joy came from witnessing the excitement of others, almost as if their enthusiasm was infectious, as if we had been craving seeing others happy.

It was a refreshing experience to be part of these crowds of complete strangers and discover that, for a moment at least, we could all be united in a positive, common experience. For a moment, I could forget all that weighs heavily on me and just be enveloped in joy. I know this may not be replicable daily and I’m not arguing for some utopia of optimistic unity artificially glossing over all that divides us. But, these experiences showed me that we could all benefit from more opportunities of experiencing the unexpected joy that comes from collective excitement. I know I did.

Wendi is co-author of The Unexpected Ever Afters blog and enjoys sipping extra hot coffee, sharing a love of reading with her kids, and exploring bike trails.

photo credit: personal photo