Busy On Two Levels

When I arrived at the lodge last night I was not surprised to find that I was the first one to pull into the parking lot. Somehow, despite having left the office a little later than usual, I made it to the lodge in nearly record time… why can’t this be the case on meeting nights? After saying goodnight to my son and making my usual stop at the post office, I unlocked the double doors, turned on the lights, and immediately headed for the coffee maker. Still reaping the benefits of making that donation!

After getting a few more things done on the computer and with the coffee cup nearly at half full, I took a break from the illuminated screen and headed out the front door to enjoy the fresh air and the congested sounds of the modern main line. Like many nights before, it was only a couple of minutes and a few phone calls later that our first candidate turned the corner and made his way up the stairs. I really enjoy seeing a motivated candidate at the lodge on these nights.

It is great to get the updates from their perspectives as well because we need to know not only if we are doing our jobs in preparing them but we need to know how everything is being perceived. After all, anyone who has participated in degree work know that it is a combination of substance AND presentation (which includes the ritual). These are the first experiences that a man has as a mason and a memory that will last a lifetime so we need to take the time to make sure that we are on point.

Over the next ten minutes or so, many more brothers walked up and into the building filling the social hall and lodge room with the sounds of good work and education being done. The lodge has come a long way from when I first started attending these fellowship nights soon after being raised. The attendance is certainly up and the dedication in many of the brethren is clear. We have always had a few that put forth the time and energy to guide candidates and now we have many all shining lights on the path.

What is even more reassuring is the fact that we also have other candidates in process and at least one more petition that needs to be read. We are moving forward and there is a difference that can be felt among the brethren. There is a passion in our ritual, a dedication in our words, and a heartfelt commitment in our actions… this is the true difference between a lodge maintaining the status quo and one that is a living and breathing fraternity inspired by the light in each of our fellow brothers. And those lights are getting brighter.

Autumn Day Returns

Last year was the first time that I was able to make it down to Elizabethtown for Autumn Day. As you may recall, it was a very special occasion as many of us converged on the retirement community to attend the dedication ceremony for the Eternal Flame. It was one heck of a day and I enjoyed spending time with many of the brethren from my lodge especially those whom I don’t see often. This year, I was equally excited to be attending Autumn Day but for a completely different reason.

Every once in a while I like to bring my wife and family to various masonic events. We have all been pretty busy this past year but we have been planning for a little while to come together and enjoy the day at Elizabethtown. Not only were my wife and son with me this time but my parents and sister’s family also joined us for the walk around the campus, crafts, food, and other laid back events lining the streets and halls of the Masonic Village. This is what made the day special this year.

The timing of the event worked out well for us as the weather is beginning to cool and our son is enjoying being outdoors and looking at the trees. It was fun walking him around, some pushing in the stroller and some carrying in my arms, and seeing his eyes dart from new sights to new sounds, up and down, and back to mommy and daddy. I enjoying bringing him to these new places and giving him experiences that will hopefully instill in him a desire to see more.

It was also a great time for us all to get out as a family (the first time since the reunion over the summer). This time without the long distance travel and having to stay in an unfamiliar hotel room. We were able to come together for a day trip and have a relaxing (for the most part) day walking around, exploring the buildings and grounds, enjoy some free food, and browsing the arts and crafts the residents have for sale. It was also an opportunity for me to share just a little bit about freemasonry with my family… there are always a lot of brothers in attendance at the event to tell you about freemasonry, their lodge, and their appendant body. This was also a great opportunity for me to find some appendant bodies outside of the city that can save me some commute time.  

For me this was the second year in a row that I have gone down to Elizabethtown. However, I hope to make Autumn Days an annual family trip where we can just enjoy being outside, have great conversations, and watch the kids play in the bountiful open spaces. Something else to look forward to next year (and every year after that)!

Where’s The Mail?

This year it seems like every lodge meeting is sneaking up on me. As I have documented in this blog, I used to have the routine of heading over to the lodge every Tuesday to check in and make sure that everything was taken care of. This was especially true the Tuesday before a stated meeting. No surprise, my schedule has changed and I now find myself trying to get the same amount of work done in about half the time (if I am lucky).

Last night I was finally able to make it back to Ardmore to catch up with the dedicated brothers in attendance and also to check the mail. Well, that was the plan. I was able to speak with many of the brothers in attendance but the mail was a different situation. As it had been some time since I last cleaned out the box, the post office decided to hold much of the mail behind the counter in a bin. This may not be a concern for some but that is simply not the case.

The only times that I have been able to get back to the main line have been in the evenings and occasionally on the weekends when we have something scheduled beyond a simple trip to the post office. Basically, the times that I am in the area I am either busy doing something else or it is long after the post office has closed. I guess there is going to have to be a special trip or detour to Ardmore in the very near future.

However, as is always the case, the best part of the night is seeing that the lodge is still active. We have had some bumps along the way this year at the lodge but it is great to see that everything and everyone is still moving in the right direction. The new brothers have really taken ownership of their masonic education and I continue to look forward to seeing them participate more and more as time goes on. Who knows, maybe there is a new secretary among them for when I am ready to hand things off (years down the road).

Things remain busy at lodge, work, and at home. While hectic at times (most of the time actually) I don’t think I would change a thing. Well, maybe longer hours at the post office but that is about it. Maybe, just maybe, things will calm down a bit over the next few months but I wouldn’t be surprised if the opposite were true. Regardless of what happens to the schedule, things will continue moving forward and that is really all that any of us can do.

A Little Lodge Surprise

 Having received the email earlier in the morning, I was sitting at the kitchen table yesterday continuing to work on a variety of pressing projects while rummaging through the overflow of papers that had taken over my work bag. In the middle of all this I was going back and forth on my lode email trying to determine whether or not we would still be having fellowship during this cold and windy night. As the afternoon continued, it seemed less and less likely that I would be joined by my fellow brothers… it looked as though it was going to be a quick evening.

With no real anticipation of being joined in Ardmore that night, I took my time finishing up a few things, packing my bag, and heading out the door. While I would normally arrive after work around 7, last night I turned the corner about thirty minutes later than usual and noticed something surprising… all the lights were on. After checking the mailbox across the street I walked through the main doors only to find a first floor void of any activity. Without a second thought I made my way up the stairs and found the lodge room door wide open and a few muffled instructions coming from within.

I entered the room only to find that I had become the longest standing member of the lodge in this small but dedicated group of 6 brothers. I think that might have been the first time that I had experienced that and it was a bit of an odd feeling. They were all there to learn some of the roles during the degree work going step by step lead by a brother raised only 5 months prior. Impressive leadership to say the least.

With things well under control I walked to the front of the room, pulled out the mail and the ledger, and took care of a few of the items that I had just retrieved from the post office. Once those few items were taken care of, it was time to pull out the computer (another odd feeling for me sitting at desk in the lodge room) and get some other work done that I had been putting off all day. Basically all the items that are without deadlines but should be taken care of as soon as I have a free moment or two.

Even while working I was still able to look out over the screen and check on the progress of our new brothers. Occasionally a question would be cast in my direction and, to my surprise, I was able to respond rather quickly. I guess I have absorbed more than I realized over the past couple of years.

The night came to an end around the usual time and we all made our way back out into the frigid weather. Some of us heading home to family while others taking the time to grab some dinner before getting on the road. However, we all left knowing that we would see each other again the following week which is a welcomed change from just a year ago.

Dedication Of Time

Don't lose your Masonic marbles thinking about all the time you have put into the lodge!

First the first time since I was raised my lodge had to schedule two extra meetings for the month. Last night was the first of these and it was great to see both brothers passed. It was especially nice to sit at my desk again and catch up on a few items after having missed the sated meeting last week. While they will both make fine members of the fraternity they are both completely different thus far in their involvement and, seemingly, their motivation in becoming Masons. One brother is taking every opportunity to learn as much as possible and to be at the lodge while the other needed quite a bit of prompting throughout the evening.

It is interesting to put these meetings and the degree work in perspective as the Worshipful Master did so eloquently last night. With 15 brothers in attendance putting about 2 hours in last night alone, which is 30 man hours that have been committed to these new masons to ensure they received their second degree. That stat alone made a few people pause and think about how much we have all committed to our fellow brothers and the lodge not just last night but throughout the past year.

In general, the December extra meetings are always interesting because you have a mix of outgoing and incoming officers working together for this brief overlapping period of time. Of course, there are also those of us who are staying right were we have been so much of this back and forth is simply observation on our parts. However, with a renewed abundance of brothers that are interested in holding office, it is a great time to see the activity and the interest that is being taken in the lodge and the work being done.

We will only have a few days before our next extra meeting when we will welcome a new brother and raise another. For now, we will be working with the brothers still in the middle of the process and work with them to make sure that they are getting out of this process what we are all putting in. That is really all that we can do and it has worked well this year ensuring that new brothers are welcomed into the lodge and start their masonic journey with that deep connection that we all have with the fraternity and with our fellow brothers.

All Gave Some, Some Gave All

It was another early Saturday morning on the road and this trip I have been looking forward to for months. With the final appeals to the brethren to join us in Elizabethtown we convened just after 10:00am and gathered on the lawn waiting for the dedication of the eternal flame to begin. This monument, dedicated to all those brothers who have served in the armed forces, was the focus of the morning so it was only fitting that the first brother from our lodge we met at the event was a World War II veteran, a machine gunner in Patton’s 3^rd Army, who actually became a mason the same day that I did just over a year and a half ago.

Just behind our brother, the Grand Lodge officers were preparing for the precession.

And waiting for the program to begin was the largest crowd, filled with veterans from all branched and various decades, which I have ever seen at Elizabethtown.

Without a doubt, our lodge was well represented as two of the brothers from my lodge, both veterans and members of the Sojourners, recited “A Toast To The Flag”. I have hear both of them recite this poem before and this might have been their best performance to date. Certainly no better and more poignant venue.

Branch by branch, war by war, each veteran was acknowledged in a way apropos to the tone of the morning.

With the dedication nearly complete we all took a few moments and turned our eyes to the sky as a B25 flew low and slow over the crowd.

As the event concluded and the crowd converged on the monument to bravery, Governor Corbett made a point to personally speak with the oldest veteran present this morning who was also recognized earlier when he received a valor blanket.

We slowly made our way to the flame to both take a closer look, find friends, family, and brothers and also to take a moment for ourselves to think about those in our lives that have made the monument possible. All gave some, some gave all. It was during these moments when I was fortunate to capture an image of three of the brothers in my lodge at the flame dedicated to their service.

However, the image that will stay with me from today was an unguarded moment of my brother reading the plaque at the base of the flame. This after taking some time shuffling around the monument looking for small pieces that represent those from our lodge. A veteran of World War II who served on the USS Missouri, I can’t imagine what must have been going through his mind.

 

Having said farewell to our brothers, we made our way to the Autumn Days Festival just a short walk from the dedication. Of course, with most people arriving at the festival around noon, the food was the first thing that we came across.

 

In the middle of the festival, in the courtyard, the crowd convened on the lawn to enjoy the shade and entertainment.

 

After walking around for a couple of hours, we turned around and began making our way back to the car. We were not the only ones who were running out of steam as all the quiet spaces along the sides had at least a few people stopping for a moment to rest.

 

Just before we walked across the field and got back in the car, I couldn’t help but take one final picture of the Eternal Flame off in the distance. While the dedication only lasted an hour, the monument remains and the sacrifices represented can never be measured by time. These are the moments that make me particularly proud to be a Mason and I will never forget this morning. I look forward to sharing moments like this with my growing family.