butterfly hope

The project is intended to assist the reader (traveler) in their personal journey.  The advantage of this "virual labyrinth," is that there are no natural restrictions.......one scene can be a nice river...and the next a mountain top. The idea is to relax...and allow your mind to go there.

Make your on virtual labyrinth - as a way to remind you where you are going. 

        The start of a journey through the labyrinth

 As you sit on the bench....close your eyes. Take a deep breath...and exhale slowly. Listen to the sounds of nature.

What do you hear? What fragrances do you smell?

What do you feel?

Ask yourself, what do you have to gain by taking this journey through the labyrinth? Do you have antyhing to lose?

An old proverb says, "When the student is ready, the teacher will appear." 

Sit as long as you wish. When you are ready, let the journey begin.

                                  The bridge

Consciously, you choose to walk across the bridge into the labyrinth. Anxiously you anticipate what this journey will bring.    

                                  A Rose

At the first curve we stop to experience a solitare rose. You  notice the vibrant color...the sweet aroma. 

You study it for a while. Touch the petals with your fingers. How does it feel? Smell your fingers after touching it. What do your fingers smell like? Is this a fragrance that will linger with you on your journey?

Now study the stem of the rose...the vein of life. Do you notice the thorns?

How does the rose represent life?              

                                    A turtle 

 Your journey takes you past a marsh, where you see a turtle  lazily resting on a limb. Silently the turtle communes with nature.

You reflect back to your childhood, recalling Aesop's fable, "The Tortoise and the Hare."

You ask yourself, which creature was wiser? 

Are you more like the tortoise or the hare?

Have you ever taken the time to just be?

Is it a possibilty to have both the positive attributes of the tortoise and the hare?

When you are ready, continue the inward journey of the labyrinth.

                                                     The  Marsh

 You continue your journey through the marsh. A tree is 

 proturding through the water at an angle. Carefully you study 

 the tree. You notice the bark, the leaves the spanish moss

 dangling form the limbs. Listen carefully to the sound of the

 rippling brook.  Smell the freshness of the air. Feel the wind

 blowing gently across your face.

 What does this scene tell you about nature?

 Does it remind you of the splender of God?

 How do you relate to this tree? To the rippling brook?

 Does this scene bring you comfort? Peace?

 When you are ready, continue the inward journey.

                                The Fence 

You round a corner on a dirt road and wander upon a horse a pasture.

Wild and free is the spirit of the horse. Yet the spirit is contained inside a fence.

What do you see when you look at the horse?

What are your thoughts of the fence that surrounds him?

Have you ever felt your spirit was being fenced in?

Who imprisoned your spirit? Was it society? Religion?  You own self limiting ideas?

Was it for you own good? Or was it to your determent?

What would it be like to for your spirit to be free?

Once you ponder  these questions, and perhaps some of your own…feel free to continue at your own pace.

                                   The Ocean

You take a turn on a sandy trail that leads to the ocean.

President John Kennedy said, “All of us have in our veins the exact same percentage of salt in our blood that exists in the ocean, and therefore, we have salt in our blood, in our sweat, in our tears. We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea—whether it is to sail or to watch it—we are going back from whence we came.”

How do you feel when you are standing on the shoreline?

Do you feel calm?

Does it make you realize that there is a vast world with infinite possiblities?

How does the sea touch your soul?

Are the feelings that you have while by the ocean, someting you want to have everyday? How can you make that happen?

Take time to wade in the cool water. Experience the sand between your toes. Inhale the salty air.

When you are ready, continue your journey.

                                                      A burnt cabin

Slowly you walk up a trail. You take notice of the different colors of leaves on the ground. You smell the crispness off the air. A light wind blows into your face. You happen upon the remains of what once was a cabin.

Immediately you think of the lyrics from the Beatles classic, "Yesterday."  

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdCjaiXmUb0

Yesterday 

all my troubles seemed so far away
Now it looks as though
they`re here to stay
Oh I believe in yesterday

Suddenly
I`m not half the man I used to be
there`s a shadow hanging over me
Oh yesterday came suddenly

Why she had to go I don`t know
she wouldn`t say
  
I said something wrong
Now I long for yesterday

Yesterday
Love was such an easy game to play
Now I need a place to hide away
Oh I believe in yesterday

Why she had to go I don't know
she wouldn't say
I said something wrong
Now I long for yesterday

Yesterday
Love was such an easy game to play
Now I need a place to hide away
Oh, I believe in yesterday

Yesterday this cabin was new. Now it is gone away.

Do you sometime long for yesterday?

Was yesterday really that good? Or is it that yesterday isn't today?

What changes would you make if you went back to yesterday?

What changes can you make today, to make tomoorow better? 

The waterfall

 You stroll up a hill and then take a path down into a valley. After  making your way through some thickets you stumble upon a waterfall

 For centuries...eons rain has fallen upon the river. The river runs to the edge of the mountain and then drops to the bottom, where it continues its journey. All the time shaping the hard rocks that make up the countryside.

Over your life time, what has shaped you?

How are you like the river? The waterfall?

The water replenishes the earth. In what way have you replinished those around you?

Think about these questions, and those of your own. When it is time, continus the journey. 

                                     A Deer

You turn around a bend. Night time is swiftly coming. You spot a deer in the grass. It sees you and instantly freezes as if a statue. Is stays stills for a few moments...when she has the courage, she scampers away.

What do you think of when you see a deer? Innocence? Freedom?

Beauty?

Has there ever been a place in your life when you acted as a "deer caught in the headlights?" How did you manage that situation? What do you do when a trouble situation arise? How would you like to react?

When you are ready continue on your journey. There will be just of few more stops before you reach the center of the labyrinth.

WARNING

After walking up a small incline you stumble upon a warning sign. Now you must determine whether to heed the advice, or to alter your trek.

Who in your life have given you warning signs? A minister? A parent? A teacher?  Your higher self?

Did you listen? What happened if you didn’t?

Ponder on the direction you are going. Are there any warning signs? If so are they valid?

After think on this…continue on the path that is right for you.

                              A Butterfly

 As you round the next bend you see a beautiful yellow butterfly resting on a leaf. Carefully examine it. What colors do you see? Do you notice how it blends into nature?

For many a butterfly is a reminder of love ones that have passed over.

What does the butterfly represent for to you? What memories does if bring to you?

What does it say about God and nature?

When you are ready, continue onward. You are almost to the center of the labyrinth.

If you are fortunate the butterfly will escort you.

                                                     A Gazebo

You arrive at a gazebo, a resting spot before the long hike to the center of the labyrinth.

The round gazebo gives you a full view of your surroundings. The trails you came in on, and the one you will move forward on.

What have you learned on this journey?

Is there more to learn?

                                    The Grand Waterfall

You have reached the center of the labyrinth to discover a beautiful flowing waterfall.

Take a few minutes to marvel at the specter. Take in a deep breath….smell the freshness of the air

60% of the human body is comprised of water. Logic would dictate that since water is majestic, therefore man must also be majestic. Therefore you must be a majestic creature of God!

Spend a few minutes contemplating the waterfall.

Is the flow of the waterfall a reflection of the energy of you soul? Would you like for it to be? What can you do to make it so?

Spend as much time as you like. When you are ready, it will be time to journey outwards through the labyrinth. On the outward journey you may pass some of the things you passed on the inward journey….yet they may have a different significance.

                                          The Moon

 You hike down the hill, and once again arrive at the gazebo. It is nightfall so you decide to rest for the night. To the right of the gazebo you see the full moon shining brightly.

Consider this poem.

The sun is rising

       over the lonely ridge

The moon is sinking

        through the depth of the quiet sea

A new day is here

      for the night is gone

The day has brought sunshine

        along with a little rain

I run through the day

       not knowing where to or why

Birds hover, singing, over my head

       while serpents snap at my naked feet

I sit and watch the autumn leaves fall

        and swish away with the howling wind

I lay and rest awhile; and wonder on

       The miracle of night and day

All is quiet now

       I don’t know why

The moon is rising

       over the lonely ridge

The sun is sinking

       through the depth of the quiet sea

The night is here

       for the day is gone

What have you learned from yesterday? Are you able to put those lessons to good use tomorrow?

Think on this while you rest. In the morning it will be time to continue your journey.

                                        Dark Clouds

You wake in the morning to dark rain clouds. You smile at the thought that you have shelter under the gazebo. You sit and allow the rain to come.

Do you ever wake in the morning feeling as though a dark cloud is hanging over your head?

How do you handle it? Is there a different way you could handle it? Where or to whom do you go for shelter?

Rest a while until the rain passes.

                                         A rainbow

After the rain the sky remains gray and gloomy. Suddenlly you spy a rainbow outshining the darkness. In the story of Noah, God placed the rainbow in the sky as a covenant. It was a sign of hope.

What do you think about when you see a rainbow? What gives you a feeling of hope when things are gloomy?

The rain has stopped. Proceed when you are ready on your journey to the outer portion of the labyrinth.

                               Camouflage

You weave your way around the circle. You pass some pretty bushes. You take a double look at one of the leaves and find a butterfly blending into the leaf. It has an almost a perfect camouflage. You take the time to consider it.

Have you ever camouflaged who you were to fit into your environment? How did it make you feel? Safe?  Were you afraid that you would be discovered? Do you ever camouflage your identity to yourself?

Before you continue your journey, think about these questions

                                 A Parrot

After a short jaunt down a trail you stumble upon a parrot sitting in a tree. You notice way the blue, green and red blend perfectly together. You marvel at nature.

How has things blended together in your life? Can you see how seemingly ordinary things come together to create something beautiful?

When you are ready continue on the trail.

                                                   The Trail

You focus your attention to the trail in front of you. You take a deep breath as you continue to enjoy your journey.

Is it the journey that is most important to you? or the destination?

Think about thos two questions as weave towards the outer rim of the labyrinth.

                                        A redwinged blackbird

You see a redwinged blackbird surveying its surrounding. The blackbird does not look into the past, nor the future; it is totally involved in the now.

What are you feeling about the present...the now? Is it wiser, for you, to long for yesterday, worry about tomorrow...or to live in the now?

Think about this for a few minutes before you move on. You only have a few more stops until you are to the end of the labyrinth.

                                              The mountain

As you walk forward you take a second to look over your shoulder. Yous ee a mountain in the distance. You notice the majestic beauty of the mountains. You are grateful that you took the time to look at it.

What in your life are you grateful for? Take a few minutes to list them. Do you think that it would be good to start each day, by focusing on gratitude?

When it is time...continue onward.

                                              A herd of horses

As you journey you stumble upon a herd of wild horses. You notice a mother and her colt grazing side by side. As you watch it occurs to you the horse accept one another unconditonally.

When you love is it conitional? or unconditional? Ponder on this for a few minutes. 

                                        A house

As you round the bend on the way outward, you see a house on the site where there was once rubble. You remark how quickly this structure replaced the burnt on that was once here.

Are there times where you had to build over burnt down dreams? Was the new dream stronger than the old? Did you build a stronger foundation?

                                                 A new day

Your journey is almost complete. A new day is here. Yesterday is gone.

What are you going to do with the new day? What lessons from yesterday will help make this a better day?

                                       A ballon race!

You are at the end of the journey! You stumble upon a hot air ballon race. Listen to the shouts of the people on the ground. Listen to the laughter. Experience the colors that are floating by.

Life is a celebration. CELEBRATE!

Think about your journey through the labyrinth? Did you learn anything about yourself? Did it make you think?

If nothing else, we hope that you discover life is a true celebration....what better time to start than now!

       Celebrate!

We are all on a journey...that started at conception and will continue onward, possibly into infinity.  

A labyrinth is an ancient symblol that relates to wholeness. A  will have certain saying are thoughts written on a plaque, meant to inspire the traveler to reflect on areas of life.

One the traveler reaches the center, it is time to return, again with my areas to stop by, for reflection.

A labyrinth is a great tool for meditation, prayer, spiritual growth and relaxation.