New Year's Eve Labyrinth Walk

Happy New Year!
Tonight (new year's eve), CtK hosts the Gallatin Valley Interfaith Association Labyrinth Walk. It provides a wonderful opportunity to reflect on the year now over and prepare for the new year.
Labyrinths are used in a wide variety of faith traditions. One of the most famous labyrinths is in the floor of the Chartres Cathedral.
Read about the event here, in a Bozeman Daily Chronicle article from last week.

From the website of Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, which houses a replica of the Chartres Labyrinth:
General Information and Instructions
The labyrinth is an archetype, a divine imprint, found in all religious traditions in various forms around the world. By walking a replica of the Chartres labyrinth, laid in the floor of Chartres Cathedral in France around 1220, we are rediscovering a long-forgotten mystical tradition.

The labyrinth has only one path so there are no tricks to it and no dead ends. The path winds throughout and becomes a mirror for where we are in our lives. It touches our sorrows and releases our joys. Walk it with an open mind and an open heart.

Three stages of the walk
Purgation (Releasing) ~ A releasing, a letting go of the details of your life. This is the act of shedding thoughts and distractions. A time to open the heart and quiet the mind.

Illumination (Receiving) ~ When you reach the center, stay there as long as you like. It is a place of meditation and prayer. Receive what is there for you to receive.

Union (Returning) ~ As you leave, following the same path out of the center as you came in, you enter the third stage, which is joining God, your Higher Power, or the healing forces at work in the world. Each time you walk the labyrinth you become more empowered to find and do the work for which you feel your soul is reaching.

Guidelines for the walk Quiet your mind and become aware of your breath. Allow yourself to find the pace your body wants to go. The path is two ways. Those going in will meet those coming out. You may "pass" people or let others step around you. Do what feels natural.

Happy New Year!

So, we're more than a week into 2014. How does it feel?
Most folks who had significant time off, or changes to their usual routines, during the holiday weeks around Christmas and New Year's are now back to "normal" schedules. I saw on the news on Monday that some psychologists referred to that day as "Blue Monday" - because the festivities were over and "real life" was back underway.
The festivities weren't quite over at our house on Monday, since it was the 6th of January, which is The Epiphany of Our Lord. We had our neighbors over for a pizza party and then chalked our door and prayed for blessings in the new year. Fun!
Did you make any resolutions for the new year? Lots of folks do. Lots of folks don't. I appreciated a blog post on  ... In the Meantime" from Luther Seminary Professor David Lose about new year's resolutions. He calls them "tweaks" this year. As for me, I've made goals - things to work toward, but not things that are either on or off...
If you are someone who needs a little accountability to achieve goals, or keep on keeping on with resolutions, feel free to post in the comments, or give me a call. I'd be happy to check with you on your progress as the year unfolds...