The entire World Labyrinth Community mourns the passage of Judy Hopen from the physical plane and celebrates the physical and spiritual legacies she left for us.  In her own words, Judy was a “labyrinth artiste extraordinaire.” Her physical legacy includes approximately 1,000 canvas labyrinths she painted – probably no one knows the exact number – and many labyrinth installations with which she assisted while working at Labyrinth Enterprises. Her spiritual legacies include her fun-loving, bubbly personality, as well as her indefatigable positive attitude and spirit.  Lea Goode-Harris’ beautiful remembrance and photos of Judy are provided here with Lea’s permission.  Judy’s obituary is in the South East Missourian.  Judy Hopen was affiliated with The Labyrinth Society from its infancy.  She was an active participant in TLS initiatives and was a familiar figure at many TLS Gatherings.  Judy's vibrant presence, enthusiasm, delight in life and 'all things labyrinth' will be greatly missed and surely celebrated as those who knew her walk labyrinths all over the world in her memory.

_{photo: Labyrinth Enterprises}

Timeless Flow ~ Reflections and Currents in the Labyrinth, was the theme that flowed throughout Gathering 2012 as we congregated on the bluffs overlooking the St. Croix River in Hudson, Wisconsin, in October.  Pre-Gathering activities included tours of some of the many area labyrinths, art workshops in sandcasting, beading, needle felting, and an equine experience walking with horses through the labyrinth paths.  Our opening ceremonies included a sacred water blessing by indigenous women of the Ojibwe tribe and a multi-media presentation, River Croix, which introduced us to the national scenic riverway through images, poetry and song. We were caught in the current and carried along into the weekend with individual reflections by Jeff Saward on Friday and Lauren Artress on Saturday, sharing the history of labyrinths from earliest known to the present day surge. 

Concurrent workshops and Poster Presentations allowed us to dive deeper into our explorations of stories and sharing of new insights and lessons that the labyrinth offers. The water theme was even more present as Saturday skies drizzled upon us, but not so much to dampen the inspiration that resulted in whirlpools of creativity as temporary labyrinths bubbled forth from raked leaves, knitted yarn, chalk and paint. The weekend was sprinkled with familiar offerings such as the Silent Auction, Vendor Room, TLS Store and Jewelry Gypsies, and we cast our votes to elect new leadership at the Annual Meeting. Ripples of conversation drifted throughout at the confluence of friends new and old.  A Healing Energy area offered services as well as a warm fireside reflection area with a splash of canvas labyrinths.

On Saturday evening we sang together led by local musician Sara Thomsen. On Sunday morning we walked together, carrying a river poem on the waves of Native American flute and crystal singing bowls, meandering through historic watery-blue labyrinth paths. Jill Geoffrion shared the struggles, grief and joys of her global work on several continents, including African orphans, widows and victims of war and torture.

This was followed by the installation of the new TLS Board of Directors, the sending off of retiring Board members to the Wisdom Circle, and a traditional spiral dance for the closing celebration. Our spiraling was echoed by the majestic circling of bald eagles in migration and nature paths winding through the acres of forest and prairie.  Those who lingered longer continued to be swept by the current, priming the well of wisdom in the post-Gathering workshop and exploring more of the area, with ancient Indian burial mounds that overlook the river, and labyrinth locations that included a unique water crematory. 

As we bid our farewells and drifted apart, we were buoyed by the promise of our next Gathering at another shore, on an island off the Pacific coast. As we dream of meeting again on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, in September 17-22, 2013, we can almost taste the salt water in the air.

There’s a wonderful surprise in store for you on the Members Only Website under Gathering Proceedings to add to the abundance of membership benefits!

This year’s Gathering presenters were asked to submit a short, concise synopsis of their presentations. These presentation abstracts have been uploaded and are now available. So dive right into the vast reservoir of labyrinth topics and expertise available in this virtual tour of presentations.

This edition of TLS eNews includes a link to the current issue of the Labyrinth Network Northwest (LNN) November 2012 newsletter (pdf 1.45MB).  The LNN newsletter contains 2012 Gathering reflections written by three of its members:  Christiana Brinton, Kay Kinneavy, and Jodi Lorimer. LNN is an organisational member of TLS.  The reflections convey the very personal experiences of these three Gathering participants.  

TLS President John Rhodes has extended a personal invitation to all those who participated in this year's Gathering to consider sharing their experience with members who could not be there in person this year:

"Each TLS Gathering has its own, unique flavour.  Like a labyrinth walk, each participant experiences a Gathering in a way that is ultimately very personal.  Would you like to share your personal reflections on the 2012 TLS Gathering?  If so, please send them to the TLS Publications Chair.  If we receive enough reflections we can create a 2012 TLS Gathering 'Reflection Collection' on the website.  Also like a labyrinth walk, as you write your reflections, consider the metaphors for your life revealed by your 2012 Gathering experience, taken as a whole."

A very special part of the Annual Gatherings is the opportunity to search out—and sometimes help build!—and walk the temporary labyrinths created for the occasion. Tom Vetter from Crystal, Minnesota, who describes himself as a “prolific (obsessive!) designer and builder of unique, temporary labyrinths" designed a beautiful variation on the 11-circuit Chartres. Here is his account of the design process. 

_{photo: Jeff Saward}

My labyrinth at our recent TLS gathering at Hudson, Wisconsin, was inspired by our theme: "Timeless Flow ~ Reflections and Currents in the Labyrinth". Matching the Chartres Cathedral labyrinth in its 42 ft. diameter size, it also has 11 circuits (as counted diagonally along the spirals), four quadrants, and an offset entrance. In addition, it incorporates double-spirals inspired by the stone carvings at Newgrange (circa 3000 BC).

Because of my synthesis of spirals along with elements from the Chartres Cathedral labyrinth, I call my design "The Spiral~Chartres Labyrinth". It is meant to be a bridge across time which trancends time. As William Blake notes, the eternal and the temporal are co-existant: "Eternity is in love with the productions of time." Using both left-handed and right-handed spirals in my ruler and compass construction results in one half of the labyrinth "reflecting" the other half, a bilateral symmetry both left/right and top/bottom.

The spirals also function to create a "flow" and a rhythm as one moves into and out of them and from one quadrant to another. Instead of using the six "petals" from the Chartres design, I reimagined and relocated them as six "islands" within the left, right, and top arms, two in each. These are meant to be places where one can step off the path to rest, reflect, or just be. At the center of the labyrinth I created a "nest", a small, distinct circle of yellow pine needles about one path-width in diameter. I was happy to hear that Rev. Jill Geoffrion and others actually sat on the nest as part of their walk!

This labyrinth was "birthed", and I thank Leslie Pettis from Farmington, Minnesota (a co-member of the Minnesota Labyrinth Network) and Carol (my wife) for being my "midwives" in this creation. I couldn't have done it without them. I also thank the author/authors of the "Timeless Flow" theme for inspiring me.

Tom Vetter can be reached by email.