Introduction
You are on a journey – a journey to the centre of the labyrinth and out again.
This is your time to contemplate, to encounter the sacred, or to simply embrace peace.
Follow the arrows on the path before you. They are your guide as you journey.
The double footprints along the path will indicate where you are to pause or stop.
As you walk, you will discover that each site along the pathway has a number and title as well as a specific meditation.
When the music track changes, that will signal your transition to the next site.
Feel free to press pause or repeat.
Journey at your own pace for it is your time to seek and to discover, to let go and to celebrate.
Open your mind and heart.
Let go of things that might hinder you: expectations of others, pressures of time or work, and all else that might distract you from staying in this sacred moment.
You are invited to listen to that still small voice within – the voice that speaks of God, in you, in creation, and all around you.
Breathe deeply and slowly.
Revel in the stillness and stay in the moment.
As you journey, look, listen, feel, and ponder.
Be open to discovering the wonder of God, the wonder of life, the wonder of your presence in this time and space.
Renew your spirit.
You are a traveler on an open road that leads to destinations both known and unknown.
That is part of life’s mystery.
Your life is a journey whether your path is clear or uncertain, whether your road is straight or disappears around the bend, whether there are obstacles or simply a smooth trail.
And God is your companion on the journey.
Share your real self, your struggles, heartaches, joys, and celebrations – all that is you.
Discover God at work in you and in your life.
Embrace the sacred on these pathways and within yourself.
Journey in light – Journey in Hope – Journey in Peace.

Site 1 – Connect with the Earth
The earth has its own rhythm – its own pace.
It will not be hurried or rushed.
At one time we lived at one with the natural rhythm of day and night and the rhythm of the seasons.
Now we live in the age of technology.
The pace of life is faster.
We have more time-saving devices but less leisure, more ways of staying in touch but less real connectedness.
Before clocks, before television, before electricity, our lives were in harmony with the movement of the heavens and the cycles of the earth.
When it was light, we arose, welcomed the day, worked, and played.
When it was dark, we rested, shared moments, reflected on the day, celebrated, and slept.
In spring we celebrated the newness of life and watched in awe as all that seemed dormant came alive once more.
We saw the days grow longer and warmth bring forth life.
Seeds were planted; new creatures were born.
Life happened at its own pace, the pace of the earth.
There was a harmony with creation and a respect for the gifts of the earth.
Look at creation all around you in this moment: the trees, grass, sunlight, birds – Life.
Let go of the demands on your time, the demands on your energy.
Breathe deeply and slowly as you look at the wheel, the plow, the prairie grass – reminders of the early pioneers whose lives followed the cycles of the earth and seasons.
Embrace the rhythm of the earth, the rhythm of creation, the slow pulse of life, beating as a single heartbeat – God’s.

Site 2 -Let Go of the Busyness
Our lives are full of busyness and noise.
Our lives are full of demands – demands on our time, our energy, our emotions.
We barely take time to slow down let alone stop.
Identify some of the activity around you: the cars going by, dogs barking, people walking by, the busyness of life.
Savor each sound, each bit of activity.
Explore the images on the column before you.
What in it reflects your life . . . your reality?
Look at the sundial before you – a reminder of the busyness both without and within.
Now listen to the inner noise, the activity within you.
What busyness is going on within you?
What noises continue even though you are quiet?
The demands of friends, family, work?
“To Do” lists that you have for yourself or that others have for you?
Identify your inner noises. Listen to each one then set it aside.
“Be Still” was not God’s command but God’s gentle invitation.
You are invited to discover the stillness of this space . . . the stillness and peace of God.
Breathe deeply, slowly.
Embrace stillness.
God speaks in the stillness and silence . . . the result is peace and understanding.
Listen for God’s signal . . .
Listen to your heartbeat – God’s gift of life . . . Listen . . . Be still . . .
Be at peace.

Site 3 – Celebrate the Present
Breathe deeply, slowly.
Each breath is a breath of life – a gift from the One who created you.
Each breath reminds you of the gift of the present – the life you have in this moment.
To live more fully in the present, though, sometimes means letting go of hurts from the past.
In front of you is an area of small stones – an area that appears somewhat barren of life.
This place represents the hurts from your past.
Take a stone from this area.
Imagine one of the deepest hurts or concerns you carry.
Hold the stone tightly in your hand.
What worry or hurt do you need to let go of to lighten your heart?
Name the hurt, the anger, the concern . . .
Walk to the dry stream bed that goes beneath the bridge.
Hold the stone over it.
When you are ready, let it go.
Watch it fall away.
Imagine your hurt, your concern, your worries falling into God’s hands.
Imagine giving it over to God completely.
How does it feel?
With each stone you drop, imagine letting that “hurt” fall gently into the hands of God.
God’s hands are hands of healing and love where hurt is transformed into forgiveness and peace.
Let go and let God lighten your heart so that, like the bridge you see before you, you can cross from barren rocks to the color and life beyond.
When you release those things that have weighed upon your heart, you can truly celebrate the present with joy.
The barren becomes filled with color and life and it brings color and life into your being.
Celebrate the moment for it is gift – God’s gift in each moment,
each day, and in each breath you take.

Site 4 – Seek Meaning
On this journey called life there are so many choices and so many demands on your energy.
It is easy to lose sight of what is important and what is not.
Look at the stone before you.
It is a reminder that life is a journey.
The footprints represent your life journey, your quest to find meaning.
Look at the carved footprints in the stone.
Where do the footprints come from?
Where do they lead?
What do they pass along the way?
Life is all about revelation.
God reveals the meaning of life to you each and every day.
Are you listening?
Are you responding?
Examine your life.
Where does most of your energy go?
What takes up most of your time?
Are these the things that are most important and meaningful to you?
Would God agree?
The more you look at something, the more you see.
Look again at the carved stone before you.
Is there something more to it than you first noticed?
If someone looked at your life, as you are looking at the stone, what would they learn about you and what you hold sacred?
What do you “need” to spend more time on?
What renews you?
What makes your heart sing?
What do you need to change to keep God at the centre?
Consider God’s call within your heart then ask yourself: “When I am gone, what “footprint” does God wish for me to leave on this earth?
God’s imprint is on your heart.
You simply need to discover that and live it.
Seek meaning.
That is a choice for life.

Site 5 – Embrace Life
Trees embrace life.
They grow in some of the harshest places and in some of the worst conditions.
They grow on sheer rock faces; they cling to steep mountain sides.
They are shaped and formed by each hardship they endure.
Intense drought, fierce winds, and solid rock help the roots of the tree go deeper and the trunk grow stronger.
The tree endures because it embraces all of life, the good and the difficult.

Embrace life is an invitation and a choice.
You can choose to be devastated by painful experiences or you can examine how you are called to learn and grow from them.
Some of the most difficult experiences in life have the most to teach you about yourself, about others, and about God.

What difficult or painful experience have you had to face:
The death of someone you loved?
The end of a relationship or job?
Conflicts or hardships in a relationship?

How has facing that experience changed and formed you?
How have you grown because of it?
What inner resources do you draw from?
What do you need to bring healing or forgiveness?

God calls us to life, to be in right relationship with people, with creation, and with our creator.
Examine your life as you examine the tree of life before you.
What is life giving?
What relationships “feed” your spirit and help you grow?
What experiences have helped you become stronger and sink your roots deeper?
Some experiences may have been painful, others, uplifting . . .
How did they help you become stronger and more rooted?
“Embrace life” is an invitation and an opportunity.
It is a call to transform all that is not life giving into experiences of growth.
It is a call to sink your roots deeper into God where there is forgiveness, healing, and life.

Site 6 – Embrace the Sacred
We seek the sacred. It calls to each of us.
It is the still small voice echoing in the depths of our being.
It is a voice of love that embraces all that we are, without judgement.
Here, in this space, let your thoughts focus on the sacred.
God is here in your midst.
God has been present throughout your life journey.
Relax in God’s presence.
Let God in.
Open yourself, completely . . .
Be real.
Stay in this moment, in the gentle embrace of the God who loves you.
And listen to the voice of God speaking in the depth of your being.
God is here for you.
Embrace God.

 

Site 7 – You Affect Others
Water – it is essential for all life.
We can live without food for weeks, but without water we will survive for only a few days.
We watch the sky for rain for our flowers, gardens, and crops.
We immerse ourselves in water to become clean; some cultures baptize people with water to remind them of death and life and the wonder of being reborn.
Water is essential for life.

Watch as the water falls.
See the gentle ripples that spread and expand.
Imagine that each drop of water that falls is a person whose life you have touched.
How have you had a ripple effect on that individual?
How has God used you to bring “life” to another?
It may have been something you said, something you did, or it may simply have been your presence at a particular moment in time.
You affect others.
Celebrate the wonder of creation that is You.
Like water, you too are essential for life.
God works through you to touch the lives of others. God always has.
God has also brought special people into your life – people who have created ripples in the far reaches of your being.
Who has helped you become the person you are?
Take time to think of this person.
Name him or her.
Celebrate his or her unique imprint on your being.
How were you changed?
Celebrate others whose lives have come in contact with your own.
Say a quiet thank you to God for the blessing they have been in your life and for all the ripples they have created.
And thank God for the wonder of YOU.

 

        

Site 8 – You Do Not Walk Alone
Follow the footprints that create a pathway between two trees.
Notice that there are two sets – a reminder that you do not walk this path of life alone.
The footprints lead to a bench that celebrates relationships.
Before you sit, look at the pattern before you.
What in it speaks of your life journey?
Everything around you reveals something of your connectedness to others: the rose bushes, the footprints, the bench, the inukshuk.
All are reminders that you do not walk this path of life alone.
We are called to live in “right relationship” with others.
How has your life been an example of that?
Think of people who you have journeyed with.
Can you see their faces?
Where have you walked with them?
When have you held their hand?
When have they held yours?
When have you been there for one another?
Reflect on moments where you sensed the ordinary had become the extraordinary and you knew God was in your midst.
Recall some of those God moments.
God walks with you through the difficult times and the wondrous.
Spend some time in gratitude to God for the gift of companions on the journey.

Site 9 – You Are Light For The World
In the beginning there was darkness.
God said, “Let there be light” and it was so.
The light was the sun, the moon, the stars and you.
The light is in you and all around you.
The “Eye of God”, recreated here in red and yellow stone, spreads its light into the darkness illuminating the far reaches of the universe.
We are drawn to the light . . . the light of our creator . . .
the light that is God.
Every soul contains its own light – its own small flame:
some brightly burning, some flickering and almost out.
You have a light within your soul – a flame that illuminates the darkness.
The world needs your light.
One small flame can touch and ignite many more until the whole world is bathed in light.
How have you been “light for the world”?
Reflect on moments where your presence or action touched the heart of another and made that person’s light a little brighter.
Think of a time when your actions helped transform a person, organization, or community.
How are you called to share your light with the world?
How has it made a difference to people around you?
Think of one or two whose lives have been changed because you lived.
Who are in need of your flame . . . your passion?
May you continue to light your world with the special person God created in you.
And may you always seek and embrace the light of God that shines all around you.

Site 10 – Celebrate Life’s Little Joys
Children see the world with awe and wonder.
They stop, look, play, dance and celebrate.
Simple things, like butterflies and frogs, are cause for great joy and excitement.
Small things become enormous and little things bring great joy.
Children’s sense of curiosity leads them to stop and explore the wonder of their surroundings . . . to discover the intrinsic beauty of the everyday.
The ordinary becomes remarkable even extraordinary through the eyes of a child.
Celebrate life’s little joys.
Stop and look with the eyes of a child – your inner child.
See creation around you as a child might see it.
Let small things become a source of awe and wonder.
Let them arouse your curiosity about the world around you.
Look at your life with the wonder of a child.
Look at things again, as if you are seeing them for the first time.
What brings you joy?
What do you most celebrate?
What are the simple things that have brought meaning to your life? Name them.
What are the small things you sometimes miss that are truly “God moments”. Recall some.
Find something in each day that you can look at with the awe and wonder of a child.
It changes how you live.
It lets you see God everywhere.
And God moments abound.

Site 11 – Go In Peace
Peace comes from knowing and seeing God in the people around us, in the wonders of creation, and in the life we live.
Peace also comes from recognising the God within.
Take a moment to relax in the comfort of the chair before you.
From here you can look back at the pathway you have walked.
Reflect for a moment on your labyrinth journey:

moments of letting go,
moments of revelation,
moments of sadness,
moments of joy,
moments of peace,
moments of affirmation,
moments of God.

Life is filled with moments of God.
See the dove before you, flying into the sun.
It flies freely surrounded by light.
May your spirit fly free and may God’s light surround you.
Go in peace and know that you do not walk this path of life alone.