On The Avenue: The Eclipse
This week On The Avenue, just when Nashville thought we couldn’t hold another out of towner, the moon decided to do what we thought only Taylor Swift could… block out the sun. Our humble city happened to be in the narrow path in which you could see the eclipse in totality (which is a pretty big deal) and everyone was buzzing about it. That being the case, Westwood Avenue, along with the rest of the city, decided to close its doors on Monday and have a viewing party.
In preparation for said party we had to purchase some eclipse glasses, which were the only things preventing the entire country from going blind while attempting to watch the eclipse. When I arrived back at the office, I distributed a pair to each member of the team to test them out, and just like true Nashvillians (always ready for a performance) we filed outside for our impromptu eclipse rehearsal. As everyone stared up at the sun with no fear, I was surprised at the level of excitement while viewing it on a regular Wednesday afternoon. Each standing there with their eyes turned to the sky shouting variations of, “Wow, there’s the sun!” it seemed that our pre performance was a marker for good things to come.
The week turned into the weekend and for the first time ever, all of Nashville was excited for a Monday. So there we were watching as the moon crept over the sun ever so slowly, waiting for the main event. As time passed and totality approached, everyone put down their forks and their beers and picked up their glasses. The sun was barely visible now and darkness suddenly covered the neighborhood. Everyone oohed and ahhed as they looked up at the diamond ring in the sky and then to the ground to see the shadow snakes scurrying across the pavement. All told, it lasted about 2 minutes, and then the sun came back out and the moon said its goodbyes. Though it was short lived, it was truly a sight to be seen. No big surprise, it far surpassed the rehearsal.
Check back here with me every week as I guide you down our crazy path here on the avenue.
-Sarah Lang
