labyrinths and the suburbs of Detroit
Jul. 29th, 2006 08:09 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
snugglekittyI've walked two labyrinths in the past few weeks.
First I walked the Peace Labyrinth at St. John's Prep in Danvers with![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
7j and teratomarty. That was very nice. It really was devoted to peace, tolerance, and interfaith understanding. The labyrinth incorporated religious symbols from all over the world, including paganism (referenced as Wicca) and indigenous Africa. It was a square labyrinth, which I'm normally not a huge fan of. But it was very pretty and original. I really liked the way it used pavers, ceramic tiles (that was what had the symbols) and plants, mostly lavender. If you're local to Boston, and at all interested in labyrinths, I really recommend this one. (It's near a shrine of Mary, as was another Catholic labyrinth I walked earlier this year, which makes me wonder if there's some symbolic connection between Mary and labyrinths. Anyone know? Wikipedia doesn't mention.)
Then I walked the labyrinth in the basement of the Episcopal ArchDiocese. That was... a bit more problematic. Basically they said I could go anytime, so I went on a weekday afternoon. But there were tables and chairs (six tables, twenty chairs) sitting on top of the labyrinth when I got there. I spent much more time moving the chairs and then moving them back than I did walking the labyrinth itself. I needed a diagram to get it right. Also, I badly bruised my toe on one of the chairs. Also, the floor was filthy. I had forgotten that about church floors, how dirty they are. I spend so little time in churches these days.
The labyrinth itself was a very small, contemporary design. Paint on a wooden floor. What surprised me most about it was that it had very masculine energy. Much more than the square one at the Catholic boys' school, so go figure. But I exited the labyrinth feeling incredibly Yang - "I've made my to-do list, and now I'm going to start doing." Most labyrinths are very Yin, inward and reflective. But I guess I got what I needed from it. I wonder what it would be like to walk it without a specific issue or problem in mind, if it would have the same quality.
I might be walking another labyrinth tomorrow. I'll keep you posted.
And this morning, I took a walk through the Detroit suburbs.
At first, it was really bugging me how similar the houses all looked. I was thinking about reading Middlesex, the way it talks about the factories trying to de-ethnicize everyone, turning them into "Americans" by force. I was thinking about the way that what it means to be American was defined by the dominant social forces at that time. And still is, to some extent. I had an argument with my aunt about that a few weeks ago. She was talking about immigrants "taking over" parts of where she lives. "Why don't they just learn English!" she was saying. I talked about my tutoring work, and also about how I wish my immigrating ancestors, her grandparents, had kept more of their cultural heritage, and she agreed with me about that. But anyway.
As I kept walking, it started to strike me more how different the houses were. Yes, they all started with the same model. But the gardens were different. The tacky lawn ornaments made me happy, because they were different. One house had an accessibility ramp. Some had new additions or remodeled porches. Even the ones that hadn't been remodeled had different welcome mats and door decorations. You just can't push people into boxes, no mattter how hard you try. We grow out of them.
Anyway, I walked to the park, around the park, and back. It took about an hour and a half. It was a good walk, and I'm planning to walk again tomorrow morning. It was nice being out while most people were still asleep, and getting a feeling for what the land feels like when it's not in use. I'll keep you updated.
First I walked the Peace Labyrinth at St. John's Prep in Danvers with
7j and teratomarty. That was very nice. It really was devoted to peace, tolerance, and interfaith understanding. The labyrinth incorporated religious symbols from all over the world, including paganism (referenced as Wicca) and indigenous Africa. It was a square labyrinth, which I'm normally not a huge fan of. But it was very pretty and original. I really liked the way it used pavers, ceramic tiles (that was what had the symbols) and plants, mostly lavender. If you're local to Boston, and at all interested in labyrinths, I really recommend this one. (It's near a shrine of Mary, as was another Catholic labyrinth I walked earlier this year, which makes me wonder if there's some symbolic connection between Mary and labyrinths. Anyone know? Wikipedia doesn't mention.)Then I walked the labyrinth in the basement of the Episcopal ArchDiocese. That was... a bit more problematic. Basically they said I could go anytime, so I went on a weekday afternoon. But there were tables and chairs (six tables, twenty chairs) sitting on top of the labyrinth when I got there. I spent much more time moving the chairs and then moving them back than I did walking the labyrinth itself. I needed a diagram to get it right. Also, I badly bruised my toe on one of the chairs. Also, the floor was filthy. I had forgotten that about church floors, how dirty they are. I spend so little time in churches these days.
The labyrinth itself was a very small, contemporary design. Paint on a wooden floor. What surprised me most about it was that it had very masculine energy. Much more than the square one at the Catholic boys' school, so go figure. But I exited the labyrinth feeling incredibly Yang - "I've made my to-do list, and now I'm going to start doing." Most labyrinths are very Yin, inward and reflective. But I guess I got what I needed from it. I wonder what it would be like to walk it without a specific issue or problem in mind, if it would have the same quality.
I might be walking another labyrinth tomorrow. I'll keep you posted.
And this morning, I took a walk through the Detroit suburbs.
At first, it was really bugging me how similar the houses all looked. I was thinking about reading Middlesex, the way it talks about the factories trying to de-ethnicize everyone, turning them into "Americans" by force. I was thinking about the way that what it means to be American was defined by the dominant social forces at that time. And still is, to some extent. I had an argument with my aunt about that a few weeks ago. She was talking about immigrants "taking over" parts of where she lives. "Why don't they just learn English!" she was saying. I talked about my tutoring work, and also about how I wish my immigrating ancestors, her grandparents, had kept more of their cultural heritage, and she agreed with me about that. But anyway.
As I kept walking, it started to strike me more how different the houses were. Yes, they all started with the same model. But the gardens were different. The tacky lawn ornaments made me happy, because they were different. One house had an accessibility ramp. Some had new additions or remodeled porches. Even the ones that hadn't been remodeled had different welcome mats and door decorations. You just can't push people into boxes, no mattter how hard you try. We grow out of them.
Anyway, I walked to the park, around the park, and back. It took about an hour and a half. It was a good walk, and I'm planning to walk again tomorrow morning. It was nice being out while most people were still asleep, and getting a feeling for what the land feels like when it's not in use. I'll keep you updated.
