For a few breathless minutes, Erie stood beneath a vanished sun. On April 8, 2024, the city fell into the path of totality, and daylight dimmed to a spectral hush. Shadows sharpened, birds quieted, and the streets—usually bright with spring—took on the pallor of a dream. It was as if the sky had blinked, and in that blink, something ancient stirred. Neighbors gathered in silence, heads tilted skyward, watching the moon devour the sun in a slow, perfect arc. The eclipse passed, but the feeling lingered: Erie had been touched by something vast and strange.