Well, tonight is the night. If all goes according to plan (and Duncan has showed us that it doesn't always) I will be raised to Master Mason tonight around 7pm CST. To say that I am excited would not fully describe my feelings about tonight. I have been looking forward to this for a long time and I am finally reaching my goal. I want to thank all of you for walking with me from when I first posted as a candidate, to tonight, hopefully posting as a full member and Brother in this esteemed fraternity. Thank you for your support, as well as your light.
Enjoy the night my brother. You'll always remember it. Hopefully the goat trailer will get there on time. We were using it Monday night, and it's a bit of a haul from MN to TN
Wow...I'm not sure what else to say. The degree was put on by out civil war degree team as a practice for a degree they are doing on Saturday in Knoxville (scheduled to have 200-300 brothers in attendance). They were not in period regalia, however the team consists of 8 Past Masters and 1 Past Grand Master of Tennessee (who obligated me and was WM for most of the degree). The ritual work was fantastic, or at least seemed like it. I need time to process what just happened, but I know that it was something I will never forget.
Learning Lectures WOO-WOO! I am SOOOO! glad to hear someone taking an interest in the Lectures. I started with the Lecture of the Entered Apprentice Degree. It is actually much easier than most Masons think. It's just work and inculcation (repetition). As you have just been raised, though, it would be wise to wrap up your Master Masons Degree Catechism first. Strike while the iron is hot! Another little thing, please do not forget to practice your old catechisms once in a while; whatever it takes-once a month, once a week, so that if you ever need them, to coach, to administer an Obligation (conferring a degree), or, perhaps to gently remind a Brother what he once promised, you'll not have to learn them all over. S&F
This is advice to take to heart . Because of all the bodies I am a member of and all the lectures/degrees in these bodies I have put to memory , my degree catechisms have taken a back seat and now I struggle with them when I have not practiced them . I need to get back into the practice of going over them once a week , but I am now working on putting another degree in the York Rite to memory .
Thank you very much for the advice. I will definitely work on getting my MM catechism done. Not knowing it, I feel like I promised a whole bunch of things I don't remember. I will get it done as soon as I can. But I will probably have to wait for next month. I have a lot of studding I have to get done for school in May, and my little blue book doesn't mind the strange hours that I have to work on memorization. I been going over both my EA and FC to make sure I don't forget them.
Coming in new and all fired up , you may be like me and promise everything under the sun and spread yourself to thin . I remember after I returned my FC lecture , a member asked me if I would put the Staircase lecture to memory after I was Raised . Not knowing the name of the lecture when I received the degree of a FC , I said "Sure , no problem !" . After I was Raised and given my Monitor , I flipped through it to the FC degree (and to the Staircase Lecture) and after a quick page count , did a forehead palm slap and thought to myself "CRAP!" I did get it put to memory , but now tend to hold back on making promises to put certain lectures to memory . I now just tell them "I will see what I can do" .
That sounds like you had an amazing time and I love to hear that when Brothers are recently Raised. Congratulations!!
