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Transformation of our Backyard Labyrinth

FEBRUARY 1, 2007

In 1999, I installed our backyard labyrinth. It was quite a learning for me and a lot of work, digging out the ground for each brick...
In 2002 I added an additional ring around the perimeter...

This made such a difference in experiencing the labyrinth...
Lots of things have happened here... weddings, birthdays, parties, ceremonies and celebrations, grief walks, classes, beginnings and endings... my dissertation would never have happened without this labyrinth...

Over the years, the grass has become problematic. This is mostly because the worms have decided that this is (to paraphrase Luther Burbank here) "the chosen spot of all the earth" to live. They pop their little heads, or tails, up and leave behind miniature dirt volcanoes that have turned into mud spots and have rendered the path un-walkable in the winter.
I didn't want to let it go in this old form... but I've learned to listen and the labyrinth has been asking for some time to be allowed to transform...
So... after placing all those bricks... I am now taking them out...

First, I measure... so when it comes time to replace the bricks, I will have some of the old measurements to go by... unless that changes too...

Upon moving the center gazing ball, I discover eggs...
a wonderful symbol for this first day of February, full moon,
Imbolc and Candlemas time of the year...

This earth is going to be moved to the front yard project. There the worms will be in mulch heaven and greatly appreciated for their earth-moving-transformation abilities...

I begin digging...

and digging...

and digging... and moving bricks...

Three rings to start...
stacked and ready for when they will be returned...

I sometimes...
cannot believe the things I get myself into...
but... it is so much fun,
this being in the earth...

Twenty-Seven Turns Around the Sun

By Lea Goode-Harris • 15 Mar, 2024

twenty-seven turns around and around the sun the moon smiles as well

The Retiring of a Labyrinth

By Lea Goode-Harris • 05 Aug, 2023

Labyrinths provide us with a path to practice change. Some labyrinths have withstood the passage of time for thousands of years. Others are here for just an afternoon, drawn in the sand at the edge of the ocean. Many modern labyrinths were meant to last for years, but because of unforeseen circumstances their time is shorter than intended. And they once again help us to practice letting go and giving thanks for the time they are with us. The Labyrinth of Life at the Sebastopol, California Teen Center reached such place of letting go and is at the end of one chapter and the beginning of another chapter that is yet unknown.

Making A Three Circuit Labyrinth

By Lea Goode-Harris • 05 Aug, 2023

Sometimes... a labyrinth can take years to become a physical reality. In 2018 I met with my friend Deb, to discuss her desire to have a labyrinth on the beautiful land she lives on. Despite our plans and several meetings, listening to the land and finding the right spot, the labyrinth did not come to fruition. Fast-forward five years and in the blink of an eye... it happened!