From 1/17/08
This morning I watched a video by Alberto Villoldo, Ph.D., entitled, Healing the Luminous Body: The Way of the Shaman, in which he talks about Destiny retrieval. This feels very similar to James Hillman’s ideas in Soul’s Code, and to a number of current writers/thinkers. The idea is this: no matter what current circumstances are, no matter what diagnosis you have been given, etc., there is a possible healthy, whole, joyful, successful you which already exists in the “future”; the retrieval opens a doorway to that possible you and retrieves it from the “future” to the present moment—you merely need to allow it, step into it, etc.
I took this idea with me into the labyrinth this morning, and walked toward that “possible me” which is a successful visionary artist, leaving behind the worries, fears, doubts, and nay-sayers in my mind.

The problem is, even after a “onederful” experience in the labyrinth or at the Oneness Blessing, I need constant reminders to keep me connected to that realization. A chance encounter with a butterfly can do it or with a “onederful” person; little notes I leave for myself can also be quite helpful, In this vein, I have created a line of clothing, cards, mugs, bags, and stickers which you might find helpful, too. Check them out at “The Onederful Store”—http://www.cafepress.com/oneder. I hope you enjoy your trip there, and thanks for visitng here.

It never ceases to amaze me—you follow the path of the labyrinth in to your own center and, if you look long/deeply enough, it opens out onto/into the entire universe. Kabir (version by Robert Bly) says it better than I:

Inside this clay jug are canyons
and pine mountains
And the maker of canyons
and pine mountains,
All seven oceans are inside,
and hundreds of millions of stars.
The acid that tests gold is there,
and the one who judges jewels,
And the music from the strings no one touches,
and the source of all water.
If you want the truth,
I will tell you the truth,
Friend, listen:
The God whom I love is inside.

A number of years ago a friend gave me a deck of cards called Osho Zen, based on the spiritual teachings of Osho. Eash morning I draw 1 or 2 cards to reflect on for the day. This morning I drew Clinging to the Past and Moment to Moment. I realized that an event from the previous evening upon which I was obsessing was, indeed, the past and I sure was clinging to it in continuing to chew upon it in my mind. I used my morning walk in the labyrinth, then, to be in the moment, with each step being a new moment, a new beginning, a new life all in itself. (You can select Osho Zen cards online at: http://www.osho.com/main.cfm?Area=Magazine&Sub1Menu=Tarot&Sub2Menu=OshoZenTarot&Language=English

From 1/8/8
Willow was sick over the holidays. This is the first morning in a long time that she joined me out in the labyrinth. The morning was balmy; I was in shirt sleeves, enjoying the warm breeze blowing in a new sense of inner peace and calm.

From 12/24/07
Willow hadn’t been coming to the labyrinth for a while. This morning I entered with a different energy than usual—dancing (a la Chocolat)—and she ran through a portion of the labyrinth, like a kitten playing, chasing an unseen friend.

“People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a LIGHT from within.” Elizabeth Kubler-Ross

I often find that my internal light glows brighter after a visit to the labyrinth. On the cloudiest of days, once I reach the center, it seems as if the sun has peeked out from behind those clouds, but it is just my perception of my own light radiating out.

What makes your inner light shine?

My cat companion Pollux never walked my backyard labyrinth. Shortly after her arrival in my life, my most recent cat companion, Willow, followed me right in. Other mornings she went her own way. Some people do not respond to labyrinths at all, and some only want to walk them occasionally. There have been periods of time during which I didn’t feel drawn to the labyrinth, but eventually it has always called me back.

I was in the Asheville area for a week prior to my move here. It was a beautiful, crisp fall day in October, 2001, when my friend took me to a labyrinth near Brevard. The Chartres pattern had been made by setting bricks down into a grassy field. My friend went first, and I followed shortly thereafter, delighting in the sound of the leaves crunching beneath my feet. Alas, the leaves were the same color as the bricks and, for the first and only time out of several hundred walks, I missed a turn and ended up at the beginning rather than at the center. As I cried, I processed this turn of events. Often what you get from the labyrinth is a reflection of where you are in your life, and this was perfect: I was confused and uncertain about my direction, including the impending move to Asheville. Once again, the labyrinth had spoken to me.

In November of 2007 I went to the home of Lisa Gidlow Moriarty of Paths of Peace (http://www.pathsofpeace.com/index.html) and visited several of the labyrinths she has in her yard. I would have liked more time, but it was a chilly day and I was meeting a friend for dinner. Still, the time I had there was delightful, as I got to see and walk some traditional labyrinths and some which are of Lisa’s own creation. I love the creativity which gets expressed as people play with the labyrinth. (Watch for a lap-sized quilted butterfly labyrinth from InnerLandscaping/Healing Path Quilts in the near future.)