A Partial Eclipse That Stole Amherst’s Heart
Staff writer Khadija Doha ’27 captures the Amherst community as it gathered on Monday to watch the eclipse on campus.
If you looked around the First Year Quad around three in the afternoon on Monday, April 7, you probably sensed palpable excitement in the air. Amherst students, usually sitting in class or with their noses in a book, stopped everything to go outside and gaze up. The occasion? The solar eclipse.
Some students planned road trips up north to enhance their viewing experience; others kept an eye on the sky for the entire week leading up to the eclipse on Monday. Many watched from campus and skipped class to watch it pass.
It has been a long time since the entire Amherst community came together en masse to sit back and relax in unison. Time seemed to slow down, and a hazy shadow of light and gray cascaded through campus. For only a few minutes, it was there: The moon in all its inky black beauty was perfectly in the middle of the sun. As soon as the moon came, however, it quickly went, and with its passing, we heard a gentle reminder for us all to savor each interaction, each experience, and each pocket of joy. For many students, the eclipse was a reminder of the beauty that exists in the simple and small things we encounter in the vastness of our universe.
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