Walking a labyrinth takes us on a spiritual journey where we experience release, increase our receptivity and return in the healing presence of our Higher Power. Standing at the entrance of a labyrinth, our eyes trace the path before us, turning back and forth, ever taking us inward to the center.

It is the journey, not the destination, that is the ultimate goal of walking a labyrinth.

With your first step, you begin to leave the world you know behind, seeking to travel through layers of self-exploration. Breath joins with movement as your awareness of the NOW increases, leaving past and future behind. The first turn commits you to shedding your ego, and listening to Spirit as you pause and contemplate your surroundings. What sounds do you hear? How does the earth feel beneath your feet?

Experience each breath as you continue on, open and receptive as you shed another layer of misconceptions, softening your heart to fill with self-love.

Each gentle arch in the path carries you like a river, flowing easily at it’s own pace. There is no beginning, no end, only the placement of your feet one in front of the other. With every turn, every pause, every segment of the labyrinth, we discover the unity of the universe. For our life path is that of the labyrinth, ever folding and unfolding, repeating the pattern each time a little differently. It is familiar, and we learn our lessons through the repetition.

By constantly changing directions, we look at our challenges with a new light. Sometimes we walk towards our own shadows, sometimes we walk towards the sun.

Adjusting our orientation as we walk, our breath moves in and out, bringing in new energies and releasing all that does not serve our highest good. Deep into the labyrinth now, our intention becomes experience as this initiation takes place on every level. Body, mind, and spirit unite as we turn towards the center which has appeared before us. Giving thanks for clarity, the sense of wonder increases as we become the center of the labyrinth itself. The curving folds of our whole selves surround us, as we are enfolded in the arms of the joy of life.

Beginning again from the center outward, you may be inspired to leave a trail of joy-crumbs on your return journey.

Sharing the healing and love with your fellow travelers, you know that you’re in the presence of those who have gone before in the NOW. Folding and unfolding, your steps deepen your memory of the moment. Every turn is a new beginning, every entrance becomes an adventure in the discovery of the god/dess within. There are no wrong turns on the path to the center. As you leave the physical presence of the labyrinth, you take the center with you and all its layers.

I knew right away which element I needed to work: Earth.  It’s the first element many traditions expect a practitioner to master, but I never really have.  I’m not a very earthy person.  I don’t sit still very well.  Money flows through my fingers like, well, water.  My emotions change with the wind.  Astrologically, the only personal planet I have in Earth is Mars (which is a Goddess-send, honestly, because otherwise I’d never have the discipline to get anything done.)  But perhaps because of that Mars placement, I also tend to see Earth as practical and… well, boring.

Luckily, my family and I were headed up to Siren, Wisconsin to visit our friends’ cabin on Crooked Lake.  I knew I’d be spending time with a lot of those more “glamourous” elements: water, sun/fire, wind… but could I find a way to connect with Earth?

Sitting under a canopy of pine trees, I pondered.  I brought along my favorite guided grounding meditation (from Meditation Oasis) and sat in a beach chair on the shore with my feet buried deep in the sand.  I watched ants and made shapes with my hands in the loamy dirt.  I walked through the woods watching for a sign.  Restless by nature, I’d leave each attempt feeling like a failure.  I kept asking myself:  “Where was the ‘wow’ moment?”

I forgot that sometimes the Goddess speaks in whispers or not at all.  I would tell myself to be silent, but I’d never “shut up, shutting it up.”  Sometime at the end of the weekend, it hit me that I’d been looking too hard.  In many ways, I already am Earth.  It is my own gravity, girth, goodess-shaped goodness.  Listening to the trees, for me, meant getting out of my head and into my body.    Stop seeking, and just BE.

When I decided to begin a daily meditation practice,  I was intimidated at the thought of clearing my mind. Being an artist has gifted me with an active imagination, which made the idea of shutting it down completely a seemingly impossible task. If the thought of emptying your mind intimidates you – learn to focus your thoughts on a single subject – your focal point.

Many people find this approach to meditation easy to learn, and the possibilities for personal transformation are endless. By pointing your mind in a single direction, you are practicing mindfulness, which with practice, flows into your daily life. It becomes a habit with repetition, an oasis you can call upon in the midst of a storm.

When I was learning to paint, a mentor of mine told me that nobody gets it right the first time, it’s just a matter of being willing to redo it until it works for you. I applied that knowledge to my goal. Over the past year, I have learned to harness that overactive imagination and channel it into a meditation practice.

Finding Your Focus
Finding your subject can be as easy as lighting a candle, holding a crystal, or writing a word on a slip of paper. Chanting a mantra is a type of focal point meditation. The important thing is to begin with a purpose, and explore that purpose for the best focal point for you. That means narrowing down all the possible focal points to the one that is most meaningful to you personally, for this particular purpose.

They key is to simplify. Maybe what you want from your daily meditation is to feel grounded, so you could use a heavy stone, a bowl of sand, a picture of the earth, or even a houseplant as your focus.

Compose Your Environment
Find a comfortable chair with back support and place your focal object in front of you. Allow all your senses to get involved, play music that reminds you of your subject, or use incense or a scented candle that helps you to relax. These are extra tools to keep your mind on your subject, so make sure that they don’t distract.

Before you Begin the Focal Point Meditation
If there is something in your environment distracting you, get rid of it and return your attention to your focal point. Go ahead and turn off your phone, and close the cats out of the room.

Let Your Subject Speak to You
Once your environment matches your intention, it’s time to start exploring your subject for its importance to you. This how your meditation is like a work of art. Ask yourself how it makes you feel, experience that feeling for as long as you like. If your mind wanders off, use your focal point to bring you back to the present. If it is an object, touch or hold it and allow your inner eye to inspire you again. Allow yourself to just be present with it for as long as you like. You are done whenever you say you are done, this isn’t a competition.

Keeping a journal can help you explore what you learn from your meditations, as you record the insights you gain from focusing all your attention on one thing. Just as it takes time and practice to create art, meditation takes the same amount of care and attention. I think of meditation as finding my focal point for the day, and I compose everything else to work along with that, supporting and directing my intention.