Lessons from the Labyrinth: Sacred Connections- May 7, 2026
You know those flashes when you see synchronicities in your life so clearly? Those moments when events and symbols from diverse times and places come together to reinforce a lesson you need to learn repeatedly? When you know there is one way to your center, and one way out? This past weekend, yet again, the labyrinth wove me into circles of deep lessons about connectedness.
First, you need to know about Magpie. Magpie rarely appears when I meditate on animal guides for someone, but she came last week, so I paid heed to her message. I’ve come to know that often assistance is not only for the person for whom I am meditating, but for myself. Magpie emerges when we need guidance about how to more deeply understand the spiritual realm around us. Magpie suggests that we need to pay attention to patterns in our lives, to be open to realms of reality we don’t know, and to use what we’re learning in ethical and caring ways.
I first met Magpie many years ago in the Badlands. I stood at the edge of a cliff, watching the sun rise, while she glided down a few feet from me, her ebony black and electric blue feathers iridescent in the growing light. After a few minutes of silent eye contact between us, she soared away and I watched as she became a speck in the distance. When I looked down again, I saw she had left me a feather. I still have the feather, and as I write this, it’s in an empty bowl on my desk.
One of the CDs that I took on pilgrimages over the years to the land of the Lakota in South Dakota was Canyon Trilogy by Carlos Nakai. I always played that CD while driving through the Badlands. When I got back into the car on the morning Magpie gifted me the feather, as usual, Canyon Trilogy was playing.
Stay with me here. I’m braiding Magpie, Canyon Trilogy, and the labyrinth into a cohesive story, I hope.
The first Saturday of May each year is World Labyrinth Day. Around the planet at 1 pm in every time zone, people walk labyrinths in meditation for peace. This year, I drove through hard rain to get to the church in a nearby city that has the 11-circuit labyrinth pictured below etched into its sanctuary floor. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve walked this labyrinth, and many others.
Each walk is unique, as are the lessons learned on each walk.
I left my shoes at the sanctuary door, sat for a few minutes quieting my mind and slowing my breath, then stood praying at the labyrinth entrance. As I stepped onto the labyrinth, I realized that the usual soft harp music had been replaced today by Nakai’s soft flute from Canyon Trilogy.
The flute transported me instantly to that Badlands cliff where Magpie gifted me her feather as the sun rose. Circumnavigating the labyrinth is a metaphor for how I live my life. At each of the cardinal points of the walk, I stop and honor the energies of the four directions and the four elements. On my journey inward, toward the center, I ask to be guided to accept the gifts of each direction, each element. On my journey outward from the center, I ask to be guided on how best I can share the gifts of each direction, each element. For example, at the East point, as I walk inward, I ask to receive illumination. On my way out from the center, when I stop again at the East point, I ask how best to offer illumination to others.
As I walk that stone path I’ve trod so many times before, I think about how much gratitude I have for my connections to you! I think about how much gratitude I have for the adventures and partnerships I currently have spinning:
A new book in progress
A series of creative nonfiction pieces for a regional magazine about climate change, gentrification, and social justice
A play in final draft stages
Our PsychicTeachers podcast
A series of connected course offerings over the summer (the first course, our Sacred Connections: Discovering Magic in the Ordinary starts May 12! See below.)
If you want to find a labyrinth near you, this is a good resource:
https://www.worldlabyrinthday.org/resources/labyrinth-locator
If you want to read more about the history and practice of labyrinth walking, I suggest:
Walking a Sacred Path: Rediscovering the Labyrinth as a Spiritual Practice by Lauren Artress
I’m so happy to connect with you, and I’m grateful that you subscribe to this newsletter! If you missed my last newsletter, you can read it here.
Sacred Connections: Discovering Magic in the Ordinary
Registration CLOSES Friday, May 8 at 6 pm EST
Three-Session Course
Tuesdays, May 12, 19, and 26
Afternoon and Evening Section Available
Hosted Virtually on Webex
https://debbowen.com/product-category/new-category/
Do you wonder about the science behind synchronicities I mention in the labyrinth article above? The parallels between sea beings, trees, and human anatomy? Curious about the concept of universal consciousness? You’ve noticed the threads of connection but aren’t sure what’s being woven? With the abundance of DIY spirituality, how do you make sense of it all?
In our crazy busy lives, we forget to look both upward and within. Take time with us, pause for a moment, and breathe…
Sacred Connections takes you on a journey to the wonders of the physical and spiritual world around you, and out into the cosmos. Upon successful completion, you’ll:
See yourself from a new perspective in relationship to the world around you
Develop an appreciation for the connections among historical and spiritual concepts
Discover the magic of energy and information from worlds beyond ours
Learn how to begin a practice of incorporating this information into your daily life
Please join us in this first course in our Sacred Summer Series, where we dive deeply into who we are and explore the cosmos beyond us!
Crafting the Wheel of the Year
Crafting the Wheel of the Year, co-authored with my friend Claire Gelder, is available from my website, your local bookstore, or online retailers, including
Or on my website: https://debbowen.com/crafting-the-wheel-of-the-year/
Newest Creative Nonfiction
In case you missed it, here’s my most recent creative nonfiction work published in encore magazine
https://www.encorepub.org/post/i-won-t-give-up-shifting-sands-shifting-marsh
New work is in progress and I can’t wait to tell you more!
Recommended Substack:
Amy Grisak is a nature writer based in Montana. She is superwoman! In addition to her Substack writings, she has books, with a new one in progress. You also can find her recent works in Rock & Gem Magazine, Horticulture Magazine, and Raised in the West Magazine.
Amy Grisak - https://substack.com/@amygrisak
Podcast
Deb’s Facebook Pages
Another way you and I can connect is through my Facebook pages. I’d be honored if you’d follow my pages. They are a great way to see up-to-the-minute news! I so hope you’ll LIKE and FOLLOW and feel free to comment and share posts!
Deb Bowen, Author
PsychicTeachers
Please note: Recently we’ve had several copycat pages pretending to be me or Samantha but we will never send friend requests or offer services through Facebook comments on any of my Facebook pages. If you have any questions regarding our communications, please contact me via my email. deb.bowen.crone@gmail.com
Just One More Thing Before You Go
Thank you to Mickie Mueller
for creating this symbol,
and allowing others to use it at no cost.
This symbol denotes that AI was not used
in any way in the creation of any of my work.
I so much love this piece on labyrinths. It's lovely. Thank you for the details about your process using them. Plus, I notice that you've added more beautiful things to your Substack and to your life. May the magpie be with you.
Lovely read…prompted me to seek labyrinths near me 💚