Living the Lesson of the Trowel

This past Thanksgiving was one of the more memorable for me, it was my Thanksgiving before my deployment to Afghanistan, and it was the first Thanksgiving that I shared with a brother. I invited our Tyler and his wife and one year old son out to share Thanksgiving. I am currently Junior Deacon of my mother lodge, and there is something about the relationship between a Junior Deacon and a Tyler, mainly because they are the team that ensures that the lodge is properly tyled. Heck, we even watch out for each other during balloting. Well the Tyler and I have become somewhat close friends and brothers that enjoy the company of one another. Since both of us are Texas transplants, I thought that our families could share Thanksgiving.

We talked over wine and cheese and our wives took a mile and a half walk with the baby while we talked all things Masonic. We toasted to the lodge and the great coming revolution in Freemasonry. We talked about our experiences in the military and his life goals and we capped the feast off with a great Cognac, overall it was a great evening. While Freemasonry teaches us to build spiritual temples it’s the brotherhood that is at the core of the tenants of Freemasonry, the lesson of the trowel is especially poignant regarding the brotherhood:

The Trowel is an instrument made use of by operative Masons to spread the cement which unites a building in one common mass; but we as Free and Accepted Masons, are taught to make use of it for the more noble and glorious purpose of spreading the cement which unites us into one sacred band, or society of friends and brothers, among whom no contention should ever exist, but that noble contention, or rather emulation, of who can best work and best agree.

I am thankful for my experience thus far in Freemasonry, and I hope that it continues to be a positive influence in my life.