Weekend is Here

It has been a long week, especially since I had some extra work duties that took me away for an entire 24 hour period.

On Thursday, our Past Masters Unit met and had a historic evening. The Past Masters Unit is a group of, you guessed it, Past Worshipful Masters of their respective lodges, who long time ago, joined together to assist various Masonic Lodges in conducting the ritual ceremony of the Master Mason Degree in Freemasonry, which is when a candidate becomes "full" Mason. They conduct this degree in full regalia and although the ranks have been declining, due to age in illness, they are fighting to increase membership.

This evening, two new members joined the Unit, and they are not only Past Worshipful Masters, they are current members of the Grand Lodge of Michigan, on their way to becoming the Grand Master of Michigan in the next several years. We are very fortunate to have these two new members, and I cannot wait to see them in action.

One of my goals from the very beginning was to see the bonds between the various bodies of Freemasonry get stronger, as I see in other states. There has been some animosity between several groups for decades, but as a member of the majority of the bodies, I only see the advantage of working together, because the disadvantages are all too apparent and destructive to the fraternity on the whole.

Tonight made me take a moment to witness what really is important in our Fraternity, and I am smiling.


WEEKEND: YEAH, a break, NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. Somewhat enjoyable. Saturday afternoon is the annual Directors Staff Ice Fishing Party in Lake Orion (actually on Bunny Lake). The greatest unit in the Shrine gets together to "kick" things off for the year (I hear special lamb presentation will be served this year, hmmmmmmmmmm).

Following this, I will be driving another hour to get back to the East Side and visit my Lodge. They are conducting a special 3rd degree the entire afternoon to assist 7 new candidates to become Master Masons. There is a special dinner celebrating their memberships along with an official welcome to over 60 new members who have transferred their memberships to Jefferson Lodge No. 553 in the last year (which I happen to be among).


Sunday:

It is time to see who is serious about attending the Imperial Shrine Convention in Toronto this July. Our team will make a presentation including venues, travelling and a package for Nobles/Ladies to join the Moslem Shriners for a week of fun and social activities. I am trying to be optimistic, however, the expenses of a metropolitan city, like Toronto, in Canada, with a very week American Dollar, can be overwhelming. Well, I have been steadfast in my approach to all things, and I will on this also, Toronto, here we come.


Have a Great Weekend.