Digging Deep And Discovery

Now that 2015 is underway, we are able to focus our efforts at lodge on the New Year and continue planning for the projects and events that we have been discussing over the last few months. Much of the progress was tabled as we wrapped up all the last minute items for the year and installed a new set of officers (well, some of the officers changed). Last night was going to serve as a means to get everything going and making sure that we are all pulling in the same direction to ensure that things run smoothly to start the year.

That was the plan but sometimes the weather doesn’t allow plans to come to perfect fruition. As also happened last year, the temperature plunged, a light snow coated the streets and sidewalks, and the ice quickly formed making for both a slow commute to the Ardmore and a deliberate walk to the lodge doors. Safe to say that for the second week in a row we had just a small group of brothers that converged on the lodge for fellowship and training last night.

Some may look at the recent dip in attendance and wonder if we are going to be able to pursue the same kind of progress that we achieved last year. I view this in a very different light. This is a time of year for family and many of the brothers, with their priorities perfectly in line, have taken the opportunity that this season affords them and have embraced the time to spend it with their loved ones. Those of us that have been able to make it every week have, somehow, been able to find the flexibility and balance to keep things moving forward. Of course, the whole workaholic thing also helps to motivate some of us as well.

Today there was also a discovery that helps to motivate many of us that commit the time and energy to the lodge on a daily and weekly basis. We are all part of a long Masonic history in this country and that reality was brought to the forefront in the opening of the 1795 time capsule today in Boston. The contents inside are not just contributions from the revolutionary patriots of our founding but also some of the more notable masons of the time: Sam Adams, then Governor of Massachusetts, and Paul Revere, then Grand Master of Massachusetts.

While today we play a much smaller role in the history of the fraternity, we are still a part of that continuation. Each small act that further solidifies the reputation of freemasons will continue to ripple throughout history. Sometimes it is short lived with the memory of events quickly fading while other instances and actions can continue to impact perception for decades or centuries. All that we can do at the moment is focus on the present by continuing to grow and further embracing not just our fellow brothers but the community around us as well.