The Santa Rosa Heart-Space
JUNE 5, 2018
One of the special features of the Santa Rosa Labyrinth© is the heart-space found on the fourth path.
From early on, this space has been a distinguishing feature of this contemporary design and has brought a new awareness to the importance of listening and paying attention to the wisdom of our hearts.
On the day I created the Santa Rosa Labyrinth, I didn't yet realize that it had a heart-space. The design looked like this in my original drawing.
Over the next few months, I continued to explore my new design by drawing it on paper and tracing it in the sand and walking it at the ocean with a colleague and friend. One day, I found myself wondering what would happen if I lined up the entrance path with the path to the center goal? It was that same creative up-welling that I had felt when I first created this labyrinth with compass and pencil. When I followed my creative nudge the heart-space opened.
I decided to call it the heart-space because this labyrinth has seven paths that can mirror the seven energy centers of the body. The fourth path correlates with the heart, thus its name, the heart-space of the Santa Rosa Labyrinth. In the historical archives of labyrinths, there are several designs with un-walked spaces. We can't know what the designers of those labyrinths intended with these spaces. It could have been just a design consideration, or it might have had a special meaning. Without any written records any original meaning or intent is lost to us. In my experience, I have discovered that this space is perfect for marking a meaningingful labyrinth walk. Walking in and out, the heart-space is approached from all four directions. One can place a candle there, a bowl of flowers, and other objects that add purpose to your walk. Or, this heart-space can be left empty and ready for whatever matters most to your heart.
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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.

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!