The solar eclipse 2017 could not have arrived at a better time.

We often get so wrapped up in our tangled human emotions, drowning in blame and the past without simply looking ahead, together, that it was nice to get a powerful celestial reminder that we are not so big and bad after all.

Thank you, universe, for putting everything into perspective.

We know this instinctively, of course. That’s why the nation went gaga today over the rare total eclipse giving viewers across 14 states a complete and total blackout.

Many Oxford-area residents loaded up and took trips North and East so they could get the full exposure today. Others were content to stay at home to see our 90 percent eclipse, set to peak at about 1:24 p.m., or watch the total event online.

It has been fun watching our nation get so giddy about the moon crossing paths with the sun. It’s been a topic that we have almost universally agreed upon. Everybody thought it was cooler than cool.

It wasn’t political. It wasn’t controversial. It was just our unified awe on display.