Goodthoughts

Rock stars

 There are about 500 rocks on our labyrinth.  They're all beautiful to me...but...don't tell anybody... I have some favorites.  It's the triangle rocks.  To me...they are the stars of the labyrinth!

I knew that some of the rocks on the labyrinth were shaped like triangles but didn't realize how many until I decided to take pictures.

So what's up with the triangles?  Well, most of my paintings  have triangles in them.  It's sort of a personal symbol that represents all the little "coincidences" and serendipitous moments that God leaves along our path to show us the way.

So, since a labyrinth is a metaphor for our spiritual journey in life...it seems only fitting that it should be chock full of triangles!

Here are a few of them I thought you might enjoy seeing.  And since the labyrinth is a good place for silence and contemplation...I'm going to be quiet and just let you write your own story in your head!

         

       

    

 

I will guide you in the way of wisdom and lead you along straight paths.

-- Proverbs 4:11

Rocks and the labyrinth

It was a sunny, chilly spring day last week...with wind blowing in gusts.  My friend, Susan, and I put on our coats and took mugs of hot tea with us as we walked on the labyrinth in our backyard. 

Susan and I have been friends since we were 5 years old.  We can either talk incessantly or just be together without saying a word...it doesn't really matter.  On this day we did a little of both.

We just walked and talked about what came to mind.  Susan was fascinated by the rocks.  We spent a lot of time stopping to look at the rocks...all 500 of them!  We decided they were a lot like people.

 
Some rocks were pretty and sparkly in the sunshine, some were big and strong like granite, some were small and inconspicous...almost unnoticed between 2 larger rocks.  Some were lovely colors from oxidation and mossy growth.  Most rocks were just ordinary looking...like most of us.

Susan and I looked at this broken one for a long time.  It's broken...but still useful...our labyrinth wouldn't be complete without it.  We decided they were all beautiful in their own way.

We could see ourselves in a lot of those rocks...even the broken one.  I hope when God looks at us...he sees us the way we saw those rocks...small but faithful...a part of something bigger than ourselves...being useful even when broken...and beautiful in our own way.  

Tomorrow:  ...the triangle rocks

Tending the path...again

I wrote this post back in February for our other blog, Eden's Path.  Since then, spring rains came in buckets and Chuck and I have been busy planting a new vegetable garden.  The labyrinth has taken a backseat to our other yard work.  The weeds have returned and I'm back where I started!  Our labyrinth is an ever present reminder that our spirits are a lot like nature...other things creep in when we're not mindful.  No matter how old or wise you become...life is always about... tending the path.

Late Monday afternoon, while Chuck was filling up the bird feeders, I grabbed my trowel and walked down to our labyrinth. It sits on the far end of our backyard where it’s peaceful and quiet…well, almost. There’s one exception…or maybe hundreds…it’s those screaming wild onions dancing down our peaceful path!

I do see the irony of it all. Me sitting in the middle of the labyrinth, thinking about life, being thankful to God, listening to the birds singing, and wondering how to kill the onions dead in a nontoxic, environmentally friendly sort of way. The vinegar I tried this fall only made them curly!

So, Monday I decided if the labyrinth is a metaphor for life’s journey…I’d better think differently about the onions. I started in the center and started digging them up with my trowel. Each above ground onion must have 25 to 50 underground bulbs! If this is a battle, I’ve already lost.

All I can do is tend the path. After about 15 minutes of digging, I thought this tending was going to be too hard to do. But then, I got my second wind and kept going. An hour later, Chuck helped me put the wilted onions into the wheel barrow. My back ached, but I felt better, more peaceful.

Chuck and I walked the labyrinth together as the sun was going down. A few onions I missed waved at us as we walked by, but they didn’t bother me so much as before. I think the tending was good for me.

Digging up the onions and seeing all those little bulbs up close made me realize how amazing they really were…they were doing a great job… of being onions! Maybe… the onions just need some fast growing neighbors to keep them in check. Maybe… we could plant some thyme, candytuft and creeping jenny on the labyrinth. And maybe… we’re learning a better way to think..while we’re outside tending the path.

A Walking Prayer

I walked on the labyrinth today...in the sunshine and the wind.  When I got to the center, I sat down on the triangle rock ... enjoying the birds hopping in the bushes...and the winter sun warming my back.  It's almost impossible to walk on the labyrinth without thinking about God...about life's journey...about being thankful.

Take this bright and shiny year, Lord, and fill it with your love. 
Give me the courage to be creative.
Let the child in me always be ready to come out and play.
Sprinkle ideas that are fresh and energetic into my head and heart
and let them spill out into paintings, gardens,
and kind words...written and spoken.
Thank you for this place...here amid the rocks...in the sunshine.
For the wind, the trees with rustling branches,
the birds singing back and forth songs, the sunlight and shadows,
the green grass popping up through my well-mulched labyrinth,
the wind chimes playing wildly, the memory of summer flowers,
this warm preview day of spring...
for these I'm thankful today...
here on my triangle rock in the middle of the labyrinth.
All is well.  Thank you, God.

Walking in a circle

My friend, Montrue, gave me a pretty new journal for my birthday last week.  I took it with me for a walk on the labyrinth today.   I thought you might like to see my first entry that just sort of poured out as soon as I sat down on the triangle rock in the center of the labyrinth.

I'm down here on the labyrinth on a cold and cloudy Sunday afternoon.  The leaves have just now fallen to the ground and it was a crunchy walk to the center. 

My experiment of killing the onions with white vinegar evidently didn't work since their bright green tops are dancing wildly above the orange and brown fall leaves covering the paths.  There's a lingering smell of onions wafting through the air along with the smoke from neighbor, Jack's, leaf pile.

As I look at the yard...it's quiet...resting from summer's hubbub.  I like it peaceful...relaxed like an old friend with nothing to do but sit and be with me.

Thank you, God, for days to rest...permission to be quiet and listen...
or maybe just be.
Sometimes that's enough.
Sometimes that's more than when I try to make something happen.
Life is not a product...it's a process.
You've known that since the beginning. 
Help me to know it now...not just in my head...but in my heart.
My quiet heart...where I'm alone with You.  Being...together.
All is well.  Thank you, God.

Do you hear the flowers?

It's summer... and I've been outside in our yard covered in dirt for the last month!  Every morning I put on my old khaki shorts, t-shirt, yellow baseball cap and and head out to the garden.  Last year our friends and neighbors, Montrue and Bill, gave us a concrete stepping stone for the labyrinth that reads "Our heart's nearest God in the garden." That's really true for me and it's one of the reasons I enjoy working in our garden so much.

Come with me on a quick walk through the yard and hear what the flowers are saying...

Being still

I love to go down to our labyrinth at the very back of our yard.   I usually take my little red journal and my favorite yellow fountain pen Chuck gave me.  I walk to the center and sit down on the big triangle rock and look at the trees and birds and talk to God.   It's a very peaceful place.  After sitting a while, I write down my thoughts to God. 

On this particular day, I was feeling a little frazzled and the Bible verse, "Be still and know that I am God." came to my mind.  See if you don't feel the same way I do sometimes...

Building the Labyrinth

I was folding the laundry and this thought just popped in my head.  "You need to build a labyrinth."  It sounded like a great idea to me only I wasn't exactly sure what a labyrinth was.  Oh, sure I knew all about Theseus and the Minotaur from my high school Latin class.  I also knew that some churches had labyrinths where people could walk and pray. But weren't they made out of boxwoods and cost a fortune to build?

I googled "labyrinth" and found some interesting facts.    A labyrinth is a metaphor for the spiritual journey we are all on.  I liked that idea.  It's a combination of a circle and a spiral with interesting twists and turns.  Since there is only one way in and one way out, you can't get lost.  I liked that idea too because it would be really embarrassing to get lost in my backyard!  It's not tricky like a maze which leads you on dead ends.  Labyrinths are found in many cultures and have been around for at least 4,000 years.  But best of all,  I discovered a labyrinth could be built by simply placing rocks on the grass. 

I grabbed our long tape measure and hurried to the backyard.  At the far end of the yard we had just enough room to build a 7-circuit classical labyrinth with 30 inch paths. My neighbor, Montrue, saw me measuring and asked what I was doing.  I told her I was going to build a labyrinth and all I needed were rocks.  She said, "I have rocks you can have.  They are right at the fence under the ground cover."  I said, "Are you kidding?"  No, there they were right under the periwinkle. 

A few days later, Chuck and Bill threw about 250 large rocks into our yard.  Chuck and I laid out the outline on the ground using string on stakes and orange spray paint.  Then we started placing the rocks on our orange dotted lines.  Less than 2 hours later we had half the labyrinth finished, but we were out of rocks.   

Our friends, Ben and Betty, had just finished building a kitchen fireplace with rocks from their farm and had a big pile left over and were happy to share them.  We loaded them up and brought them home.  After picking each rock up about 5 times our labyrinth was complete!  Whew!

We walked it for the first time and were amazed at the gentle rocking feeling you get while walking.  There's no right or wrong way to walk on a labyrinth.  You can walk joyfully or prayerfully, quickly or slowly, quietly or loudly.  You can walk alone or with friends.  The winding path always reminds me of life's journey.  So walk with thanks, walk looking for answers, walk noticing nature, but most of all walk to be with God and enjoy his company.  We're glad to share our labyrinth with all who want to walk. 

For more photos of our labyrinth, click here.