Winter Solstice 2008

Last night was the Winter Solstice party. The fire was incredible this year. The "outside" of the bonfire was big 6 foot logs...about 40 of them stacked into a teepee…and the center was completely packed with other firewood and newspaper. The winds were gusting at 30 miles an hour and switching direction constantly….. so there would be big "wooshes' of flames out the side and way over the top…. I threw in a wish for Suki. For a new back.

The labyrinth walk was enlightening. On the way into the labyrinth I asked about present moment living. What is the best way to maintain it? I really want to rid myself of the guilt and worry….. I've just been overwhelmed worrying about the future lately…and then I get these bouts of regrets about things in the past.

I opened myself up to the labyrinth and I got signs. While on the stepping stones in the middle of the labyrinth I first saw a rock of an old foundation. I took this to mean that I have to build a foundation… then I saw some ornamental grass swaying in the high winds… which to me was obvious. Bend with the flow. Don't be rigid. Next I saw the fence on the other side of the field, but it was squarely in "front " of me. I took this to mean that there are always obstacles, but they are able to be crossed. And last I saw the entrance to the lane that leads over the hill to the rest of the woods and down to the railroad tracks. It was a road calling me.
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On the way out of the labyrinth, it got especially cold and windy. I just kept my head down and kept following the footsteps in the snow in front of me. I tried to be "in the moment" and be conscious of every twist and turn in the labyrinth. Then I sped up…going faster… to get …done.

Then it came to me… it's the journey not the destination. Which of course, is the motto for The Goosepath. The journey.

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Just slow down. So I did. What a great metaphor for 2009.

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