There are many strange places in this region of ours. The hidden labyrinth of Owen Sound is one of them.
I had heard people talk about this labyrinth, but for the longest time, I didn’t know where exactly it was. It didn’t exist when I was growing up, but when I returned to the area in 2010, I heard whispers of this clandestine curiosity.
Some said it was tucked away behind the TD Wealth building, which is itself tucked away off 4th Avenue East in Owen Sound. Some said it was in the backyard of a home, a heritage home perhaps, across from the Professional Centre. It’s also been described as being adjacent to the Georgian Shores Church on 10th Street East, one of the famous four churches on Salvation Corners where the saints would pray for the sinners of Corkscrew City.
The third description is actually the most accurate. It is, in fact, property of the Georgian Shores United Church and the pathway is accessible from the parking lot on the southeast edge of the property. The pathway leading to this surreptitious site is met with a treed archway before opening up to a small labyrinth titled The Peace Labyrinth. Aptly named, since labyrinths are known to calm the mind and bring a person to a state of zen.
Labyrinths date back to 2000 BCE and their image has been found on coins and ceramics throughout history, but it wasn’t until the 1990s that they began to gain attention again through the work of Rev. Dr. Lauren Artress, considered to be the founder of the modern labyrinth movement.
It only makes sense that a church would embrace a trend initiated by a Reverend. And growing up attending church on Sunday mornings, I can attest for the peaceful feeling (and a boring one!) a church can bring, which is what a labyrinth is meant to reflect. There’s a reason so many tourists flock to old churches while traveling – they hold a kind of magic that has to be felt to be understood.
So, do I dare say that walking a labyrinth is, in a sense, like going to church?
Maybe they can both calm the mind, and dare I say: bring some answers to life’s most puzzling questions? It is a traditional practice to enter a labyrinth with a tough question in mind, one that you’ve been labouring over. There is only one way to the centre, so as you shut your mind off and walk, the answer may come to you. Worth a shot, anyway.
I entered the labyrinth with a few big questions (lotta strands in ol’ duder’s brain) and while I didn’t find the answer I was looking for on this particular day, I did come up with a few insights. I’m a new father and have a lot of questions about what makes a good parent. It might take a few trips to the labyrinth to answer this big question. But in the end, it comes down to love and patience: two things I think the church would get behind.
So, you might be wondering: how did this hidden labyrinth come to be?
According to the Church Administrator-Secretary at Georgian Shores United Church, Tracy Paris, The Peace Labyrinth was built on the grounds of the Georgian Shores United Church in 2006, which was known at that time as Division Street United Church.
“It was built by the loving hands of many members of faith and is open for all to come, reflect and find peace. The Labyrinth is considered a sacred pathway for prayer and meditation, patterned after the labyrinth in the Chartres Cathedral in France,” she says.
“For thousands of years the proven, soothing powers of meditation and labyrinths have cleansed the body, mind and soul. It is an ancient symbol that welcomes you for relaxation and prayer. Unlike a maze, it only has one path, which meanders throughout the whole circle leading into and back out of the centre.”
“The upkeep has been done by many different congregation members over the years.The Labyrinth is open to the public at all times. We just ask that people respect the labyrinth and the space when visiting.”
How do you walk the labyrinth? Don’t worry, Georgian Shores has a guide for you:
The labyrinth has only one path that begins at the outer edge and meanders throughout the circle until you reach the centre where you may stay as long as you wish. From the centre, you may retrace the same path back out again. Walk with an open heart and an open mind.
Quiet your mind and become aware of your breathing.
Find the pace your body wants to go and follow it.
If others are present, feel free to move around others or let others move around you.
The path is a two-way street; you may meet people coming out as you go in. Do what feels natural when you meet.
So, if you’re looking for a little solitude, reflection, or an answer to your problems, a labyrinth, this one perhaps, is where you should spend a few minutes. It can be reached at the southeast edge of the Georgian Shores Church property on 10th Street and 4th Avenue East.
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Written by Jesse Wilkinson
