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Labyrinth News 2004December 2004Blessings From the PathThere will be THREE opportunities to join in community and walk the labyrinth in December. The first, a Winter Solstice Celebration/Ritual on December 19 at 6 pm, will be sure to inspire as we celebrate the longest day of darkness and the pending rebirth of the sun. The second will be a Full Moon walk on December 26 at 6 pm. The third will be a New Year’s Eve Celebration and Ritual on December 31 at 7 pm. It will focus on letting go of that which no longer serves us and starting anew with our hopes and goals as we head into 2005. If you are new to the labyrinth, you are invited to arrive 15 minutes early to hear a brief history and “users guide” to the labyrinth. These walks will be a meaningful way to introduce the labyrinth to your friends and family this holiday season, so please bring them along and join us as we celebrate this season of rebirth and put forth our intentions to be manifested in the new year! Labyrinth t-shirts will be available for purchase at the walks. Adult sizes are $15; children’s sizes are $10. Anyone interested in helping to plan the 2005 labyrinth walk/workshop calendar is welcome to join the Labyrinth Committee on December 9 at 7 pm in Room 103. We will also be discussing accessibility to the labyrinth, path construction from the parking lot, labyrinth maintenance, and labyrinth outreach. Join us! Walk in Peace, The Labyrinth Committee November 2004There is a Full Moon Labyrinth Walk scheduled on Friday, November 26, at 7:00
pm. Don’t miss this opportunity to share fellowship and discover more about
yourself through this wonderful walking meditation tool. September 2004Creativity Labyrinth Walk at the Fall Equinox
for High School Students and Adults We invite you to walk the labyrinth at the Autumn Equinox and explore your creative center. This labyrinth walk is designed for adults and high school students. The Autumn Equinox is a time of balance, a time of transition, a time for honoring both the light and the dark. The labyrinth is a pathway to discover your creative energies. We invite you to playfully explore with various avenues of expression as you tap into the inherent artist within. No experience and no “talent” are required! We all have creative potential waiting to be expressed. Anne Eagle Walker creates a safe and loving environment for you to explore and has a light-hearted way of introducing you to your creative inner artist. Anne has been teaching The Artist’s Way classes since 1996, and she is a Veriditas-Trained Labyrinth Facilitator, as well as the Labyrinth Director at Unity Center. Her background is in psychology, spirituality, and creativity. Wear comfortable clothes. Bring a journal, an object representing your creative self, and a willingness to explore. Art supplies will be provided. $10 donation suggested. To register: contact Linda Webster (358-1852; lwebster@bga.com) or use the sign-up sheet on the labyrinth poster in the narthex. Tuesday, September 28, at 8 pm, join Susan Steffes, friend of Live Oak and Labyrinth Committee member, for a Full Moon Labyrinth Walk. A brief ritual will open the labyrinth for walking. Following the walk a sharing circle will take place. Thanks to George Huntington and Jenny Carloye for assembling the benches at the entrance of the labyrinth that were purchased by the Labyrinth Committee with the funds from t-shirt sales. Labyrinth t-shirts will be available for purchase at scheduled labyrinth walks, or you can email Susan Steffes at ssteffes@austin.rr.com to purchase one. Other upcoming facilitated walks:
August 2004“… we regard the land – all of it – as sacred: every rock, every tree, every river, every blade of grass … and because all things are sacred, all places are sacred. The places we thank the Creator … the places we celebrate our ceremonies … the places we seek for healing, contemplation, and rejuvenation. All the land … is hallowed ground because all our activities are part of the sacred cycle of life.” – Sacred Places in North America: A Journey in to the Medicine Wheel People everywhere have places that are sacred which keep them connected to the Universe. For me, one of these places is our labyrinth. This month we culminate the Live Oak Annual Water Ceremony with the pouring of the collective waters into a communal bowl in the center of the labyrinth, a symbol of our separate journeys, our diversity, and our unity that goes beyond all space and time. I could think of no more sacred space than the center of our labyrinth to share in the joining of these waters. As it will be the last time I gather on the labyrinth with you as a member of Live Oak, it is one I will carry with me forever. Thank you for sharing in my journey and richly blessing my life. There are now two benches in the entrance area to the labyrinth. Blessings to the Kaulfus family and Jon Montgomery for the trees they planted along the path to the labyrinth, to all who have been weeding the labyrinth, mowing around it, spreading fire ant killer and taking care of poison ivy, and to anyone who has contributed in ways known or unknown to the keeping of this sacred space. Every time we walk the labyrinth something happens; not just to us, but to it … it is a mutual strengthening of the powers that lie within us and within it. Blessed Be! Walk in Peace,
This is the Independence Day walk with sparklers all over the labyrinth. July 2004The Father’s Day Summer Solstice walk was facilitated by Joyce Phelps and attended by both Live Oak members and community labyrinth walkers … word is out and spreading about our wonderful labyrinth! With summer upon us, meaning warmer temperatures, you’ll notice that the labyrinth walks have been scheduled for evening and night instead of following the church services. We hope this will enable more people to walk with us both out of the heat and at times other than right after church, which of course is always nice, too. You’ll notice that the August walk is scheduled as part of the church service and I know you’re thinking this is crazy due to the heat of the day, but it isn’t a full walk. It’s more of a quick ritual involving the water from the Water Ceremony and the labyrinth and although we will all be on the labyrinth, we won’t all be walking it. Folks will then have the opportunity to do a full walk if they choose after the service, but there won’t be anything facilitated.
See you on the labyrinth! Walk in peace, Susan Steffes and the Labyrinth Committee June 2004We have shared another facilitated labyrinth walk, this one to celebrate those who have graduated from some program of learning. These monthly facilitated walks are a wonderful way to reflect on the happenings in our lives and to come together in community to contemplate. We hope you will join us and invite your friends and family as well. We have been added to the world-wide labyrinth locator website at http://wwll.veriditas.labyrinthsociety.org. Be sure to check it out; it even has a picture! There are a few corrections to the Labyrinth Walk Calendar. These are the dates:
Labyrinth t-shirts will be on sale at the facilitated walks. The plan to erect an information kiosk and comment/reflections box near the entrance has not been forgotten, nor has the plan to construct an additional pathway from the back parking lot. These plans will be carried out as funds allow. Have you heard the wonderful wind chimes donated by the Steffes family, hung in the East by Bill Dower? We are looking for a concrete bird bath to place in the South to serve as a chalice. If you have one or could purchase one, please contact Susan Steffes at ssteffes@austin.rr.com. Also under discussion are a basalt stone to hold water in the West and an early blooming tree to be planted in the North. It’s wonderful to see the continued enthusiasm surrounding the beautification of our labyrinth and people planning for more. We even have reservations by outside groups for walks and workshops. What a gift this labyrinth is! Thank you to everyone who made it possible! Walk in Peace, Susan Steffes May 2004The labyrinth calendar committee (an offshoot of the Labyrinth Committee) met in April for a full moon walk and to plan monthly labyrinth walks for Live Oak and the larger community. Below you will see what is on the church calendar so far. Each walk will have a facilitator who will explain the significance of the walk, offer a blessing or prayer, and facilitate activities that go along with the walk. We hope you can join us! If you’d like to schedule your own group walk you can do so by contacting the church administrator, Katherine Enyart. Our hope is that these walks will be attended by the larger community and that outside groups will schedule walks and use the labyrinth as well. Our first facilitated walk was April 18, 2004, and was a ribbon walk facilitated by Joyce Phelps. It was a lovely, lively walk for all ages to celebrate the renewal of the earth and the way of peace, hope, and love it brings us. You might see the ribbons that signified our intentions hanging on the trees surrounding the labyrinth. Feel free to do your own ribbon walk and add yours as well. Sue Ann Kendall has created a wonderful labyrinth webpage that can be accessed through the Live Oak website. Mike Schultz created a labyrinth website that highlights the process of creating the labyrinth. It can be found at http://lonestar.texas.net/~dianes/labyrinth/. If you brought items to help in the construction of the labyrinth and have not yet taken them home, they are probably in the shed. They can be retrieved any Sunday after church, providing you first find someone who knows the combination to open it. Labyrinth t-shirts are still available in limited sizes and can be purchased any Sunday after church. Just track down Susan Steffes. They should also be available during scheduled labyrinth walks. They cost $10 for youth sizes and $15 for adult. Labyrinth Walk Calendar: • May 23 – Sunday noon – graduation walk for all graduates and anyone who is ending one venture and beginning a new one • June 20 – Sunday 8 pm – Father’s Day/Family Summer Solstice Walk at Sunset • July 2 – Friday 9 pm – Full Moon Walk in conjunction with Social Activities Committee • August 29 – Sunday noon – Water Ceremony Walk for Homecoming • September 18 – Saturday 7 pm – Fall Equinox Creative Writing Walk • October 29 – Friday 8:30 pm – Samhain Ritual with CUUPs • November 26 – Friday 7 pm – Thanksgiving Gratitude Full Moon Walk • December 31 – Friday 7 pm – New Year’s Eve Candlelight Walk See you on the labyrinth! Susan Steffes and the Labyrinth Team April 2004
The end of February and beginning of March saw the completion of the labyrinth. We are happy to say it has been well received and has had much use. The current path to the labyrinth is from the back doors of the Fellowship Hall. An additional path from the rear parking lot will be constructed after a well-deserved rest. We should all be proud and humbled by the sacred work we’ve done. It is truly a work of love and community. The dedication was a wonderful celebration and we thank those who attended for bringing their energy to the space … we hope the energy you received as a result of your participation continues to carry and inspire you. Keep checking back for labyrinth news and scheduled community walks and celebrations. If you would like to schedule your own event on the labyrinth, contact our church administrator, Katherine Enyart, at the church office. Of course it is always open and available for private walks, but we encourage groups to schedule. Walk in peace, Susan Steffes and the Labyrinth Team March 2004The answer to last month’s quiz was the 1990s. The resurgence of labyrinth walking is credited to the Rev. Lauren Artress of Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, CA (an Episcopal Diosese) who in the 1980s began her study of the ancient meditation tool that had fallen by the wayside more than 350 years prior. She introduced the labyrinth to Grace Cathedral in 1991 and thus began the rebirth of labyrinth walking. Labyrinths can be found in a multitude of designs made from many different materials, but the most widely used designs are the 7-circuit classical Cretan design and the 11-circuit Chartres design. The Live Oak labyrinth is based on the 7-circuit classical design and was designed for us by Anne Eagle Walker of Unity Center here in Austin. In the months of February and March I will be going to the RE classes to explain more about the labyrinth to the kids, giving them some history, some lessons in labyrinth walking etiquette, and helping them to construct their own “finger labyrinths”. Be sure to ask them about it! They will be bringing home a handout and some art work related to the labyrinth. The Middle School and High School classes will get to experience the labyrinth in a deeper way when we have facilitated walks in April and May. Days of Note: February 28: labyrinth workday from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm. Bring your muscles and your tools (no children under 10, please, due to heavy equipment) March 6: labyrinth workday from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm. Bring your muscles and your tools (bring wheelbarrows, shovels, gloves, and rakes) March 13: rain date for labyrinth workday or finishing touches to labyrinth March 21: LABYRINTH DEDICATION IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING THE SERVICE. You won’t want to miss this! Come lend a hand in the construction of this spiritual tool that will serve not only our community but the larger community as well. Sign up sheets are located in the narthex. Quiz: How many labyrinths are there available to be walked in the Austin metro area? a) 7 See next month’s newsletter for the answer! Walk in Peace, Susan Steffes January 2004T-Shirts Available NOW!Get your beautiful Live Oak Labyrinth t-shirts today! The design at the top of this page is on the front, and a lovely quote is on the back. Visit church any Sunday or contact Susan at steffes@austin.rr.com to find out how to obtain one. Shirts are $15 for adult sizes (S-XXL) and $10 for children's/youth sizes. Get a Preview of the SiteDespite a downpour and the morning clouds we had a splendid day to mark out and paint the labyrinth on January 17!! It was neither wet nor muddy and it was perfect for the labyrinth service and walk on the 18th. After a brief consecration of the space the mathematician magicians (John Phelps and Mike Schultz) figured out the sacred geometry part of laying out the labyrinth while Joyce Phelps and I held guide ropes and tape measures. After an hour and a half of calculations and precise markings we began painting and within an hour the labyrinth was completed and we were walking it! It is fabulous; has a great feel and flow to it and takes just 10 minutes to walk at a normal pace. John figured the total number of steps to be 1174. Everyone is welcome to try out the temporary labyrinth while the paint is still there! |
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The
answer to last month’s quiz is 23! The Live Oak Labyrinth is the 23rd publicly
available labyrinth in the Austin area. A listing of Texas labyrinths can be
found at http://www.newlifetexas.org/texasloc.htm. (Live Oak should be added
soon.) 
Copyright
©2006, Live Oak Unitarian Universalist Church.