Chugging Along

Well, it seems that things are going okay. This past Tuesday was a long meeting. There were multiple awards to hand out, all the initial business of the first meeting of the year, and so on. We didn't get out until 9 PM, which is really something we need to try and avoid. Life would be a lot easier if we didn't have the Chapter/Council meetings back-to-back.

Some of the proposals I made seemed to be met with a lot of skepticism - but quiet skepticism. I am remaining optimistic. One thing that I'm proud of is that with the exception of one part where I skipped a short section, I have got the ritualistic opening/closing down really well.

I'm excited to see what kind of change I can help affect here, and how I can help my Chapter & Council grow.

When "No Coming Back" was a While Back

Tomorrow night is my first meeting as the presiding officer in my Chapter and Council. I've been working on the meeting agenda like a madman staring at the wall, looking for hidden messages. There may be such thing as over-preparing, but for now, I'm just gonna roll with it and let myself obsess over it.

I'm going to be proposing some practical stuff, and a bunch of idealistic stuff. It's gonna be great. I really do hope that this is something that the Chapter and Council see as a positive thing. I also have some education lined up for Council, but I don't know if we'll have enough time. I hope we do. 

I'm praying with gratitude for luck, wisdom, and guidance. I guess I'll report back later with results?

Assuming the Role of Leadership

Pray for me, y'all.

It was my profound honor to be installed as the Most Excellent High Priest in my Royal Arch Chapter, and the Thrice Illustrious Master in my Cryptic Council.

For those not familiar with these terms, the Royal Arch Chapter and Cryptic Council are two separate bodies you can join within Masonry after becoming a Master Mason - the MEHP and TIM are, respectively, the "President" of each local body.

I'm very young for a presiding officer. Very, very young. Additionally, I haven't been doing this very long - I've only been a Mason for almost two years, and I've been a York Rite mason for not quite a year and a half. This is truly a trial by fire - not a bad way, I assure you.

I'm grateful to my Companions for electing/installing me. It's kind of terrifying, to be honest, even though this is something I want. I can only hope that this nervousness motivates me to do the best job I can. I know that things will go well, though. Texas Chapter & Council have a huge network of past presiding officers that have been, and will be, great mentors to rely on.

This is going to be a fun year.

Instruction Certification & Royal Arch Degree

Gettin' Official

Well, it seems that I finally went and got myself official. As of Saturday (the 25th), I am officially certified by the Grand Lodge of Texas to teach the memory work for degree proficiencies, and the opening of all four lodges (the fourth being the Lodge of Sorrows).

Initially, I drove all the way to Phoenix Lodge in Weatherford. When I got there, just before the forum (degree exemplification and general Q&A) at 9 am, I was asked, "Hey brother! Are you here for the Commandery Work Day?" My confusion must have beeen pretty evident. I quickly explained that I was there for the exam certification, and was then told that it had been postponed to next weekend. The paper copy of the schedule posted up in the dining hall had been the same one as on the PDF I had on my phone; however, the paper version had a correction on it, in pen. The PDF, naturally, did not have this change.

At this point, I settled in the hallway, hanging out with some brothers I knew and some brothers that I didn’t know, chit-chatting about memory work, Commandery, and a few other things. One brother pointed out to me that Krum (and therefore Krum Lodge’s certification exams) was only an hour and fifteen minutes away. If I hustled, I might still be able to catch the last 20 minutes of the forum, and make it in time for the certification exams.

So I hustled!

I managed to get to Krum Lodge and had a great time. I met some District Instructors, members of the Committee on Work, and all sorts of other brothers. One brother had even heard of the podcast that I put out with some of my lodge brothers! The exams went well, and when I left, I was officially "C-certified."

Last night (Monday, March 27) was also pretty eventful. I managed to double-book myself for both Blue Lodge and Royal Arch Chapter. We had four profiencies in two different degrees in Blue Lodge, and I had my Royal Arch degree scheduled! I had to excuse myself before the last EA profiency, because it was time to go to Chapter. I was really bummed about that, because I am usually the examiner during proficiencies, and I was really looking forwards to this Brother delivering his work.

The Royal Arch degree was absolutely incredible. It was incredibly immersive and I’m still digesting it. I am looking forwards to the next time - when I can participate in it. I would write more about it, but to be quite honest, I have to let it settle a bit before I can competently talk about it! It’s got to be one of my favorite degrees so far, though. I might actually like the experience of this one as an initiate even more than the Master’s degree (although the Entered Apprentice degree still remains my favorite). This was a very physically-involved sort of experience, which I thought was awesome.

Super happy with my experience. I even bought a RAM emblem to put on my car! Very psyched to see what happens in Cryptic Council.

Advanced to the Honorary Degree of Mark Master!

MMM, delicious

Today I was advanced to the honorary degree of Mark Master Mason! I was one of three candidates. It was a fun and interesting experience. The degree team did a great job despite having a bunch of peoople missing - those filling in did very admirably. There was joviality (something very strange compared to my Blue Lodge experience) and quiet, solemn moments. Overall, it was a pretty wonderful time. Next stop: Virtual Past Master and Most Excellent Master!