Have You Been Enjoying My Box Of Chocolates?

200 days ago this blog didn’t exist. It was a time when I would rarely set aside the time to write. Sometimes I would be doing other worthwhile projects but many times I would simply be passing the time. There were many lost thoughts and forgotten recordings of my life that I would like to have back but know that is never going to be the case.

There have been days/nights when I have had a lot to say and there have been times, like tonight, when I just start writing and hope that I eventually stumble into something worth recording. That is how it goes when you post daily blogs… at least that is what happens to me. This is a medium that is reflective of life and sometimes it is interesting and exciting and sometimes not much is going on. This is accentuated by the fact that I am generally not a very interesting person and live a pretty simple life.

Of course, there have been times of opinion sharing and other posts have been about life and what experiences I have been fortunate enough to have during the whirlwind of days. In one post I could rant about presidential selfies and BS sign language translators while the next post could be about a nice little day trip into the mountains. I prefer keeping a blog using the Forrest Gump box of chocolates school of writing. Basically, if you don’t like what I have to say today just come back tomorrow and there will be something completely Monty Python.

All too often, and I have been guilt of this in the past, writers like to play the equivalent of the creative or literary knock out game. Some people have a perfect punch in their words and some of us get luck every once in a while but, most of the time, we are all taking big swings hoping that one piece connects with the audience. When it happens it’s a great feeling but it is also tiring. And I mean a George Forman kind of tired.

By writing daily, freely and openly, I have been happy to keep jabbing. Some hit hard, some clearly miss the mark but I keep throwing my first out there in a deliberate and constant way. Most of them make contact and keep me in shape. This is a matter of endurance and just like running a race at some point you are going to have to push through a wall, sometimes many walls. It the nature of the creative marathon and one that is both rewarding and addictive. 200 posts later and I am still running.

Thirty Two Times Two

Yesterday I did something that I rarely do… I left work a little early for personal reasons. Actually it was for Masonic reasons. Last night I headed back to the Grand Lodge in Philadelphia to ‘complete’ my Scottish Rite degree work. While it is an education that will never end it was a night when I would receive my thirty second degree along with a number of my fellow brothers from my blue lodge (we may have been the most well represented of the lodges in the Valley).

Having gone through the one day class back in April, seeing so many brothers doing degree work all at once was not a strange sight for me. It is actually quite impressive to see so many committed brothers take another step in their Masonic journey. If anything it was an uplifting feeling being part of such a large group of 79 brothers (out of 88 petitioners) advancing at the same time.

I know that this achievement is just the beginning. There are a lot of degrees that I was unable to witness thus far and there are many things that I still need to learn. But the culmination of this first step has put me on good footing so that I can run rather than walk in my Masonic pursuits. How far and how fast will I be able to go I don’t know but I am going to try and make as much progress as possible.

My next planned step is to witness the wide variety of degrees that, so far, I have not been witness to and record my experiences with each and every one of them. I am looking forward not only to experiencing this part of the journey but also sharing it with a number of my fellow brothers. After all, that is part of being a member of this fraternity. We share our Masonic experience with our brothers and support one another in the journey.

It is an amazing sense of pride and accomplishment having gone from a man to a mason to a 32° Scottish Rite Mason in a matter of approximately six months. That’s right that means I received my thirty second degree less than two weeks after my thirty second birthday. And throughout this process I have been greeted, welcomed, and supported as a fellow brother. It just goes to show that, if you put forth the effort and are sincere in our intentions, you will be treated as family and your fellow brothers will stand behind you and beside you as you search for more light.