Welcome back to the September Band of Bloggers! It’s that time of year again. School is starting back up. Trees are starting to turn. North America is recovering from the apocalypse brought on by the eclipse. Wait, what?
The eclipse that visited most of the United States on August 21st has been described as a once in a lifetime experience. The next eclipse to cover the US from coast to coast will not come until 2045.
That brings us to our question this month. What is your once in a lifetime experience?
Wish I had an eclipse photo to share as cool as the header photo above, but my viewing area got no such show. For a straight week our library received about 5 phone calls per hour with requests for free eclipse glasses but we never had any to give away. With all of the hype, I expected some degree of darkness to descend, but Ohio was cursed with cloudy leaden skies. The only difference I could discern was a blue gray tinge to the light and a drop of two degrees in temperature. Apparently another full eclipse (not coast-to-coast) will pass over in 2024 and the Northern Ohio area will be in the path of totality, so I’ll have to wait a little longer for that once in a lifetime experience.
Last week I took my dog for a morning walk on the nearby bike trail. We saw the usual mix of dog walkers, joggers and bikers, but en route to the car we came upon a trail first. An elderly couple was plodding along near the woods, the woman in a wheelchair, the gentleman pushing slowly behind. As we approached, they paused and greeted us with smiles, commenting on my dog’s lively attitude. Only a few minutes spent in their company left a memorable impression. As we chatted about dogs and the trail, I noticed the lady was holding a small bouquet of wildflowers and I asked if her husband just picked them. She responded that he’d been giving her flowers for over 45 years. The smiling senior gentleman mentioned he needed to take a rest so he picked his lady flowers. After saying goodbye, we parted ways.
What does this story have to do with today’s question? I believe that sweet couple has a once in a lifetime love. I hope that my husband and I will be as fortunate. Having just celebrated our 15th anniversary in July, we are on that path. We’ve already been through so much together. There will only ever be one “Once in a lifetime” for me. That is something that I know. I also know he’ll continue supporting and pushing me if need be, and I, him, but also picking me flowers and smiling.
If you’d like to play along at home, please feel free to answer this question in the comment section below, and we hope you’ll visit these Band of Blogger blogs and help support the blogger community!
Amanda at Thrifty Polished
Jaybird at The Candle Enthusiast
Julie at The Redolent Mermaid
Lauren at LoloLovesScents
Liz at Furianne
Sandra at Finger Candy
If you are a blogger and would like to join the Band of Bloggers for our monthly posts, please contact us.
The Scented Library 
We had similar results here to your eclipse view. 75% totality here in CA and I was underwhelmed.
I’m a sucker for love stories and I too hope to have that enduring kind of love.
LikeLike
Lol, your Instagram eclipse posts were amusing, even though you were not amused.
You and your hubby have a great love story, the kind of ‘everything is right with the world as long as you’re together’ story. I wish that endurance for you too.
LikeLike
Oh, old couples in love, they warm my cold, bitter heart. I see this one couple in their ’80s that go to the mall every morning for coffee, and they’re always holding hands. Then there’s the couple that are always screaming at each other. Looks like they’ve been doing that for about 60 years. So success?
I had no idea you were such a sentimental softie. 🙂 But I am, too – I go all goobery for genuine displays of emotion.
The eclipse was a non-event here – it just got dimmer and everything looked less sparkly for a bit. I took a photo the next day at the same time to compare the quality of the light, and there is a noticeable difference – things look lit, but not illuminated – but you only see it while looking at two side-by-side photographs.
LikeLike
I know right? In danger of ruining my Slytherin rep if I keep this up, two mushy love posts in three months, enough already! I adore sweet old couples, grumpy ones too I guess, gotta be something keeping ’em going. When my husband and I were selecting our wedding invitations, there was another couple in the shop designing their 50th anniversary party. Because they didn’t have kids, they took the lead themselves. They were cool and I’ve always felt I glimpsed the future there a bit.
I admire your control group picture in your eclipse light comparison, but to truly gauge the difference, wouldn’t you have to take the same photo at the same time the next year, or every day at the same time for a year to get an adequate sample size? I could be off on the science…
LikeLike
You’re a Slytherin? How naughty! Or possibly evil (I refuse to believe all the Slytherin kids are, like, Damian Omen levels of bad, though, and I feel really bad for (some of) them in the final book/movie when McGonagall orders them all down to the dungeons.) I’ll give your house this, though, Slytherin has THE best common room. I don’t know why they didn’t show it more in the movies – it’s underwater out in the lake! That’s set dressing crack!
Your science totally checks out, by the way, not that that counts for ANYTHING with me, because I am not particularly adept at the maths or sciences. Interested, but not where my talents lie. I just thought the change in the quality of the light was cool – it was light out, but the sparkle was all gone from the day.
LikeLike
So sweet. I love that you go to glimpse someone else’s happily ever after like that. Like you, I am hoping and working at our once in a lifetime.
LikeLike
It was such a chance meeting, I usually keep to myself on the trail, but they were so sweet and unexpected.
It is work, I need to work on being more available and supportive, even though he knows I always have his back. I hope too, hope to see the long love story play out. And I hope the same for you😊
LikeLike