Guemes Island
Community Labyrinth
A 100th year anniversary gift to the island from the Guemes Island Community Church
The labyrinth’s peaceful, wooded setting offers a tranquil space to walk, think or simply sit and rest.
What is a Labyrinth?
A labyrinth is a constructed path that, through winding turns, leads the walker from the outer entrance to the center. Labyrinths come in many patterns and sizes and are made from a wide variety of materials. There are no dead ends or false turns as there are in mazes. And, there are no walls limiting the walker’s view. You walk in, pause as long as you like in the center and walk back out. The oldest surviving labyrinth dates from 2500-2000 B.C.E.
The Guemes Labyrinth
The Guemes Labyrinth officially opened on June 21, 2014. It is a 7-circuit design which allows the walker to proceed immediately along the entry path to the center meditation circle or to enter the labyrinth itself and walk the spiral pathway winding through the peaceful wooded setting. The spiral leads you to the center meditation circle where you may sit a while and then choose to walk out the spiral path by which you entered or to leave via the direct pathway from the center to the labyrinth entrance.
How to Walk the Labyrinth
Walk with an open mind – there is no right or wrong way to walk a labyrinth. Some people dance or run; some may skip; others walk sedately. It can be walked alone, with friends, in a group or with strangers. There are no hard or fast rules.
The Three Stages of the Walk
Release, experience, explore.
Walk In
Let go of the details of your daily life. Experience the way your body feels as your mind quiets. You may begin with an intention to explore something in your mind or soul during the walk.
Center
Stay in the center as long as you would like. As you stand or sit thinking, meditating, praying or just listening to the sounds of birds or the breeze in the trees, receive what comes to you.
Walk Out
Take the illumination, insight or quietness you received in the center of the labyrinth back out with you into the world. Feel refreshed and ready to take on the day and start anew.