Quality Time Away From The Lodge

Already working on his degrees!

It should be no surprise that I wasn’t at the lodge last night. Instead we were still in the maternity ward with our son maintaining the annoying face mask boundary. While in the past I may have been annoyed that I wasn’t there to support my brothers in their education, I was much happier supporting my wife and son as they both recovered. And while I may not have been able to spend time with my lodge brothers last night, I was able to introduce my brother to his new nephew which proved to be one of the highlights of the day.

As soon as my wife woke me up early Sunday morning I knew that my schedule (in addition to our lives) would be just a little different this week so it didn’t take long before a sent a mass text to some of the usual attendees letting them know of my joyous absence. I wrote the following and sent it to about a dozen members of the lodge: “Due to the arrival of my future mason, I will be unable to attend lodge this week. Feel free to call if you need me for anything.”

Since sending that message I have received a flood of support from my fellow brothers. It was one congratulatory text after another to the point that my phone seems to be getting a little tired of having to chime and vibrate so often. Family comes first is not just something that we say because it sounds good, every brother in the lodge lives by that simple saying and supports those masons who also embrace that way of thinking and living.

These immediate gestures are what I hope to share with my son when he comes of age. It is a bond, a fellowship, and a true brotherly love that cannot be matched in any other civilian organization. It is something that I hope to share with my son as he gets older and now is the time that I am building the groundwork so that he can join the fraternity with a long standing connection with the brotherhood. After all, the next generation is reliant on the current generation especially when it comes to continuing a family legacy.

I may not have much to offer my son at this point but I am going to work hard each and every day so that he will look at me the same way that I see my own father. He will know from where he comes (both my family tree as well as my wife’s) and he will be able to build upon what has been achieved before him in every generation. This includes my duty as a mason and instilling in him the faith, character, and virtues that we all hold as brothers of the craft.