Another once-in-a-lifetime event has come and gone and I’m still wondering what all the hoopla was about.

Hopefully, the businesses of Central Oregon received a much-needed “shot in the arm” to help sustain them over our sometimes lean winters. Otherwise, for me, the Apoc-Eclipse felt like Y2K all over again.

I realize there are some very dedicated sky watchers who enjoy the hobby of partaking in all things celestial. Some may have even eagerly anticipated the total solar eclipse and it’s path across Oregon for many years. They find fun and entertainment learning about and participating in their pastime much the way any other hobbyist finds pleasure in their chosen pursuit.

I simply feel the hype and forecasting for an apocalyptic life-altering day or week was a bit of a reach. Perhaps the return of zombies to mainstream television fueled the notion of our needing to shelter in place and stock up on items we should have in our homes anyway.

Even the national broadcasting channels (I’m recalling Fox specifically) tried their hardest to make the moon blocking the sun into a newsworthy event. The live coverage of the various “totality” viewing areas with their gatherings of watchers was laughable. At times, they showed the more eccentric part of humanity (is wearing foil over your scalp a party hat?).

Much like interviewing spectators at a football game or auto race, the comments were predictable, and I doubt anyone watching the watchers really cared all that much what their opinion of the grand spectacle was or found any entertainment value in seeing hoards of people donning cardboard sunglasses with their necks crooked skyward.

Our area is well-known for the magnitude of our outdoor recreation. Hiking, biking, fishing, bird watching, golfing, snowboarding, skiing, paddleboarding, boating, and the indoor pleasures of quilting, reading, woodworking and more. It’s good to find something you enjoy doing — some activity of your own choosing that you find relaxing or exciting, challenging, educational or growth producing.

Many of us work hard our entire adult lives postponing passion pursuits until retirement. So for those who made a few minutes of daytime darkness into the party of a lifetime, I commend you. We can take ordinary moments and extraordinary moments and make them into memories worthy of writing home about — or writing an article about.

And if you, like me, found the whole thing a little ho-hum, or even disappointing, it is a good reminder that it is up to each of us, individually, to find what floats our boat. So get out there and find your happy place. Smile a little more. Laugh a little more. Nibble some joy. Gobble some gratitude. Learn to play sometimes, even while you work. Notice the rainbows. Dance in the rain. Make a wish on a shooting star.

And certainly, enjoy an eclipse now and then, unapologetically.

— Sana Hayes is a free spirit, as comfortable in a tiara as she is in pajamas. She writes to better encounter the radiant self in each of us. Contact her at cowgirlsana@gmail.com.