HIGHER POWER: Airport's Meditation Room lifts souls of travellers

But in a bit of irony that might have been engineered by a higher power, a steady stream of visitors on a recent weekday arrived one at a time -- so they just never met.

The airport chapel -- called a "meditation room" because it is determinedly ecumenical -- provides a respite for travelers and airline employees 365 days a year. A guestbook near the door includes entries ranging from "Merry Christmas" to "Happy Valentine's Day" offered by commuters passing through on holidays.

'Come and be quiet'

An Episcopalian, Mr. String said he appreciated the interfaith aspects of the chapel. "This is really nice," he remarked. "It's a nice place to just come and be quiet. The rest of the airport is so hectic and noisy; this is an oasis."

He pointed out a variety of prayer books on a corner bookshelf and prayer rugs on the floor. "This is the first airport chapel I've been in where they've got pillows for people who meditate," he noted. "It's a good ecumenical gesture."

"I've never actually been in" a meditation room, Jesse said thoughtfully. "I'd rather be sitting in here than out there! It's not biased to Christianity or any other thing; you can just come in and do your own thing."

Atmosphere

Inside, three curved wooden benches formed a half-circle in front of glass panels painted with clouds, mountains and a pond. A blue wall behind the panels added to the simulation of the sky, and water pouring over copper sculptures at either end of the display sounded like wind chimes in a breeze.

A small bookcase in one corner held a picture of Christ, copies of the Bible and the Quran, and Jewish, Buddhist and Hindu prayer books. A carved wooden box was marked, "For Hindu prayer." Two prayer shawls hung alongside shelves of books and pamphlets like "Science and Health," "The Way of the Bottisattva" and "Blessed Be God: Favorite Catholic Prayers." Visitors could take a rosary or pamphlet, or thumb through a directory of nearby faith communities.

Messages

Others offered suggestions: "Remember that God loves you and knows your name -- try talking to Him for a while!"..."Since the additional airline gates were opened, it's not as calm and quiet as it used to be. Perhaps a darkened window on the door would help."

Still more entries were petitions: "God save my marriage please. I will not survive without my family."..."Be with all pilots as they fly to the far corners of the world."

Some visitors tended toward the practical and even blunt: "God bless Southwest Airlines."..."Today, I'll try to refrain from sex with Frankie."

Reactions

Walking out the door, she noted her objection to some crass comments written in the guestbook by would-be comedians. "There are some things in there that just don't belong," she said.

The fact that the meditation room exists at all takes some travelers aback.

"I was passing by and saw this was a meditation place. I spend a lot of time in meditation, and I thought I'd check it out," said Dorothy Friedman of Long Island, a Buddhist priest en route to a retreat in Indiana. "It's very nice."

After meditating, she rummaged through the bookshelves, identifying a copy of the Quran in Arabic and admiring a Jewish prayer shawl until her flight was called.

A place apart

"Sometimes, you need to cool off," she said with a smile. "It's feverish. This gives you a few minutes away to center -- you can do that at your desk, but here, the phone's not ringing."

She often finds other penitents at prayer in the room. "It's a big success. People are glad to have this space," she stated. "People make use of the prayer rugs and things, and you'll see people with rosary beads. Two people will come in for a minute of quiet prayer together before a flight."

'Inner peace'

"I'm a customer service representative for U.S. Airways," she explained. "That's a high-stress job out there!"

But "in here," she said, "I come and find inner peace. This was such an addition to this place. Any job where you can get away and just sit for a minute....Nothing can touch you."

Ms. Luke said that her self-created religion combines aspects of several religious traditions, so she feels comfortable in the interfaith room. Straightening her neat navy-blue uniform, she turned to leave after several minutes of silence, remarking, "You do a lot of soul-searching. I love coming in here."

Passing by

Eleanor Zahnleuter, a parishioner of St. Madeleine Sophie's Church in Guilderland, told The Evangelist that when she's not greeting or directing lost travelers, she likes to neaten the room.

"Have you read the comments in our guestbook? They're usually favorable," she boasted.

Turning up the room's dim lights -- "I like it bright," she said -- she made sure the guestbook's accompanying pen wrote well and straightened the books on the bookshelves, putting a stack of Catholic prayer pamphlets in easy reach. She noted that a yarmulke from a Jewish boy's bar mitzvah once hung beside the prayer shawls, "but it 'walked.' A lot of things 'walk,' but we just get more.

"Okay, everything is good," she concluded with enthusiasm, heading out to stand by the airport's escalator and "just give a `good morning' as people go by. Some of these people have been in hotels; they haven't spoken to anyone in days!"

Young visitors

The sculptures with running water proved irresistible to young Christian and Noah Otto-Jones of Utica, who made a beeline for the fountains and stuck their fingers into the tiny waterfalls.

"I'm pleasantly surprised," said their mother, Ingrid, of the room. "We're going to Florida, so we're just killing time. This is intriguing. It's nice to have a quiet space."

A Methodist, she added, "I like it that it's interfaith."

Two older children sat quietly while their mother found a moment of peace later on. "I was here before, and a woman was practicing alternate nostril breathing," said mom Laura Garrison, a yoga practitioner. "I'd never seen anyone do that before."

"It's neat -- it's quiet," her daughter put in.

Afternoon scenes

"I just needed to gather my thoughts and get a little strength," she said quietly, taking a rosary and a prayer pamphlet from the bookcase and tucking them into her backpack. "I'm on my way to Maryland to see my family. I've never seen this in an airport before."

Afternoon proved the busiest time for the meditation room, with several visitors at once. Beth Margulis was traveling to Florida to see her mother, who has Alzheimer's disease, and needed to calm her frazzled nerves.

"I've been getting calls from her all week," she explained. "She's confused; she's upset -- and my flight was supposed to leave at nine, and it's now 1:20!"

She settled into a yoga position on a pillow in one corner and visibly relaxed, jumping up several minutes later when her flight was unexpectedly called. "This is a great idea," she tossed over her shoulder as she left. "I'm studying to be a massage therapist. I think I could set up a [massage] chair right outside the door!"

Meditation

But Mr. Burgess, who was in town from Kansas City to visit her, was a first-timer. "It's a good place to arrive -- just show up whole, all at once, instead of scattered," he said philosophically. "It's like the African safari that hired native porters. One day, they wouldn't go any further into the jungle. When they asked why, the porters said they were waiting for their souls to catch up."

As the couple departed, their words seemed to echo in the empty room: "It's an oasis. It's a resource."

(02-22-01) [[In-content Ad]]