Labyrinth

Obsession is at work in Hampden, in an artistic labyrinth Les Harris started creating 20 years ago. And no, it's not done yet, Harris says, since part of the point is "the idea of the unfinished."Under the roof of a rickety red-brick building that barely escaped burning to the ground in 1995 is a breathtaking wonderland of colors and images that makes a visitor expect to meet Alice around the next corner."You'd have to be crazy to do this," says Harris, a Baltimore-born, white-haired painter and sculptor whose eyes sparkle behind his glasses.

There's a leafy labyrinth on the Smith family's sprawling dairy farm in Harford County, an elaborate maze carefully crafted by hand in the 5 1/2 -acre cornfield.Yesterday, some 60 young people from Habonim Dror Camp Moshava, an overnight camp in northern Harford County, tried their luck amid the 6-foot stalks -- getting a close-up look at county agriculture as they struggled to find their way to the exit."This is kind of hard," moaned 9-year-old camper Hannah Lieberman as she and her group ran into one of the many dead ends in the "Great American Maze" on My Lady's Manor Farm.

Whenever Carol Orth walks the labyrinth, its smooth concentric paths carry her inward like a current. Approaching from the parking lot, she senses energy flowing from the classic design. It's as if she were at the shore, she says, watching the waves. Just looking at the circular formation feels really relaxing to me, she says at the beginning of the path. I wait here until I have an internal cue that tells me it's time to go. Before her, on the ground near the hospital, are seven rings spiraling into a pattern thousands of years old. Ancient people of Crete walked a version of this labyrinth.

When the Su family chose a burial plot two years ago, it had all the traditional elements valued in their native Taiwan. The site, protected by a hill, faced the sun in the south and overlooked a scenic lake at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens in Timonium. Family members, who visit the site weekly, are delighted that there are so many more of the Asian designs and symbols that for centuries have honored the dead and comforted the living. The Sus now walk through a polished granite pagoda to the cemetery's Garden of Tranquility, which will be formally dedicated Wednesday.

Two Nancy Romita and the Moving Company performances Saturday at the Baltimore Museum of Art will keep you on your toes. See Romita and company perform new works, one of which incorporates last season's humorous and touching "Go." And catch a preview of "Pathways," a work featuring a uniquely designed labyrinth. Take part in post-performance workshops and walk through the amazing labyrinth.Nancy Romita and the Moving Company perform at 3 p.m. and at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Baltimore Museum of Art, 10 Art Museum Drive.

JUST WHEN holiday demands have us feeling as if we're going round in circles, Trinitas, an a cappella trio with Kate Caldwell of Severna Park and Jane Elkin and Carolyn Sonnen of Broadneck, offers a soothing solution. The trio's new compact disc, Songs of the Labyrinth, is filled with the peaceful sounds of sacred music and chant. The melodies, dating from the ninth century to the present, are arranged to accompany meditation, quiet prayer or a labyrinth walk. A religious labyrinth, Caldwell says, is described as "an ancient sacred symbol of a pilgrimage to the divine."

Four people were arrested on drug charges after Howard County narcotics officers raided an Oakland Mills home Friday night.Members of the county Police Department's Street Drug Section executed a search and seizure warrant at 9:40 p.m. Police said they confiscated a vial of cocaine and drug paraphernalia at the home in the 9600 block of Basket Ring Road.All four people in the home at the time of the raid were arrested and charged with possession of cocaine and drug paraphernalia, police said.

On Thursday, December 4, 2003, NATHAN DINKIN; loving husband of Bertha "Bert" Dinkin (nee Grossman); beloved father of Eileen Feldman, of Bethesda, MD and Dr. Alan Dinkin, of Potomac, MD; devoted father-in-law of Richard A. Feldman and Rhonda Dinkin; beloved brother of Shirley Wolff, Norma Fineblum, Sylvia Aiken, all of Baltimore, MD and the late Sidney Dinkin; devoted brother-in-law of Albert Wolff, Harry Fineblum, Shirlee Dinkin, Esther Burday and...

On Friday, December 19, 2003, STEVEN CAPLAN; loving husband of Judy Caplan (nee Cimino); beloved father of Steven J. Caplan, Jr. and Robyn Caplan; devoted son of Donald and Joan Caplan; beloved brother of the late Robin Caplan Norris; devoted uncle of Jason Norris. Funeral Services and interment at the Beth Tfiloh Congregation Cemetery, 5800 Windsor Mill Road, on Sunday, December 21, at 10 A.M. Please omit flowers. In mourning at 7507 Labyrinth Road (21208). Arrangements by SOL LEVINSON & BROS.

On Wednesday, January 18, 2006, MORRIS PROHOVNIK beloved husband of Faye Prohovnik (nee Glanzman) loving father of Helane Cooper of Louisville, KY, devoted father-in-law of David Cooper, beloved brother of the late Julius Prohovnik, Rose Marks, Elsie Gail and Molly Bluestein, loving grandfather of Brian, Michael and Allison Cooper. Also survived by loving nieces, nephews and many dear friends. Services at SOL LEVINSON & BROS INC., 8900 Reisterstown Road at Mt. Wilson Lane on Friday, January 20 at 12 noon.