Now that Toronto has lost its Grange Park “❤️” Heart Labyrinth, it is time for a new Grange Park Labyrinth…
I wanted to get to (re)painting this earlier, but I waited until Eid Al-Adha, which was yesterday, Saturday, was observed so I wouldn’t be distracted with Religious matters on my mind while I would be Labyrinth Making.
Eid Al-Adha is properly observed for four days, taking us to Tuesday July 12 2022 until sunset, but Saturday was the Eid Prayer day, and today my mind is now freely focused towards making this.
This time,
Rather than free-hand outlining a new Labyrinth Design in chalk, I invested a good number of hours this afternoon carefully measuring, calculating, re-calculating, twice in chalk, before painting it.
I chalked the design one and a half times.
The first time I used yellow chalk and measured widths of 24 inches for each Labyrinth Lane, but the centre was somehow not centred despite my careful calculations.
I stopped and began using my metal tape measure to confirm the actual lengths of the footpath, and for the the first time realized the paver bricks do not line up into what I assumed was a true square canvas space.
Reminded me of how many round Wading Pools in Toronto I assumed were round when they were in reality a kind of slight oval shape.
I was relieved at this discovery.
A minor mystery solved.
Now that I had my Centre of the Labyrinth indeed in the correct Centre location, I had to decide whether to keep the Seven Lane Labyrinth design or start all over using a different chalk colour so as not to confuse myself, for a different Nine Lane Labyrinth design.
Started over using blue chalk for Nine Lanes.
I also carefully measured each Labyrinth Lane width at 18 inches.
And that somehow was exactly enough space, with a Labyrinth centre measured to 36 inches in diameter, to fit comfortably.
It felt as if this was finally the Labyrinth Design that belongs here.
While that feeling was from my heart, my head agreed now that the true centre of the Labyrinth was finally confirmed.
Sunlight through the leaves made it difficult to properly photograph the light and dark tones while I was chalking out the design.
So I didn’t even bother to take more photographs.
I focused on completing the chalk outline.
With afternoon now approaching evening, decision fatigue had kicked in, and I began making mistakes.
I switched to green chalk then red coloured chalk to correct my mistakes made using the blue chalk.
Having done that, I walked the outline perhaps a dozen times, in and out, to make sure I still felt happy with this hopefully Permanent Grange Park Labyrinth design, InshAllah.
Yep, it was almost as good as I could hope, so time to paint !
Chalk twice, paint once.
That’s inaccurate as I usually add more than one coat of paint per Labyrinth Line, but for today, it’s paint once.
As people saw me stop painting the Labyrinth,
A number of them began to walk it . . .
After a short while watching people exploring, experiencing my freshly (re)painted Labyrinth,
I took a break away from Grange Park to visit a number of my other Downtown Toronto Labyrinths to see how much they had faded, and how many of them also needed repainting.
A few.
I returned a little while later right at the moment this little Muslim Girl in her hijab who had been doing laps counter-clockwise around the Grange Park Footpath all afternoon, approached and scootered past my new (re)painted Labyrinth.
The previous Labyrinth in Grange Park was a “❤️” shaped Heart Labyrinth.
The current, and hopefully permanent, Grange Park Labyrinth is Nine Lane Circular design with a “❤️” inviting you to enter it, walk the path, and arrive in the centre, where you will find another “❤️”.
I haven’t made an Eid Labyrinth since before the Pandemic began, and again yesterday on Eid Al-Adha Prayer Day, I still didn’t.
Yet, with the little Muslim Girl in her blue hijab, scootering counter-clockwise all around Grange Park while I was making today’s Labyrinth, it kept reminding me of the Pilgrims in Makkah, the Hajjis, performing Tawaaf around the Holy Kaaba.
Maybe this new Grange Park Labyrinth was technically an Eid Labyrinth after all..?
Eid Al-Adha Mubarak Everybody !