My mentor and I decided I am ready to turn in my EA next week. I am nervous as a cat in a roomful of rocking chairs.
Good fortunes! You have done it many times, this time will be in a Lodge of brothers, who are mentally cherring you on, they have done it too.
If you mentor says you are ready...then I am sure you are, He wouldnt let you turn it in if you wasnt....Congrats...
Congrats and best of luck . I know it is easier said than done , but do not be nervous , we have all been in your shoes .
Take comfort from the comments you've received already on this. We ALL were nervous (and excited!). The brothers in the Lodge room will be rooting for you for sure. Best wishes, Gary
I was also nervous before every proficiency exam; and suspect most us are. But once you're up there, all you think of is what you are there to do and the nerves go away, and are later replaced with a quiet satisfaction and sense of accomplishment. Good luck, and enjoy the evening!
No sir, I have not. I have asked twice, I need to call them, I am an email kinda guy, it leaves tracks better than a conversation. BTW - my name is Russ, duncan is my renfaire name and my email address I answer to both, interchangably, and there are some people that only know me as Duncan and some others that only know me as Jamie, and then there are some that know all my names (okay renfaire is an interesting place to go and play).
How long has it been since you were initiated? If it's been more than a week or so, I'd suggest you get in touch with the Worshipful Master of your Lodge and find out who has been appointed to work with you. Generally, you should have been introduced to the person just following your initiation. There is much work to be done, so it's not a common practice for you to be left in limbo. There may be circumstances surrounding the delay, but the WM should be able to advise you. Email is nice, but sometimes you need to make a phone call to get the ball rolling.
I agree, and with an added point; while many of us "older guys" are fully integrated with email and the whole IT thing, some are not. A phone call or a personal meeting reaches across all divides.
I knocked on October 18th. I will speech with the Brother that I work with tomorrow and ask him for the WM's phone. Thanks for the input, Brothers.
I have coached several candidates through the catechisms and have learned to counsel them that returning the catechism [as we term it in the AF&AM of NC] is NOT a test. Just remember that, if your coach [or mentor] says you are ready, you ARE ready. Recently in preparing to Certify as a Lecturer in NC, I realized that the procedure to examine ends with the WM passing on the exam. We don't even have a procedure to fail the candidate! Bob
I was asked by the Tyler is I was ready for my exam and I say yes, but I was not sure I'd pass. He said 'hmm', with this insight I more clearly understand.
I guess I have been very fortunate. Immediately after the initiation I was assigned to my mentor. He has been a MM since 1960, and has been extremely patient and encouraging. I don't know the rules on your EA being accepted or not, but it seems like I heard them say something about voting afterwards. I think I am nervous because this means a lot to me and I want to do well so the brothers know it is important to me. My mentor has a funny way of trying to make me feel at ease. After our last session we were talking about when I would turn in my EA. I realized that he was talking about a night other than our regular lodge meeting night, which confused me. When I stopped to listen to him I finally realized that he had already moved on from EA and was planning my FC!
Ironhawg, You'll have more support on the Lodge than you can imagine. Yes, the do vote on you after the "examinaton". The odds of them failing you is nil. well, unless you can't even remember your name..LOL J/K Russ, How can you possibly be ready to give anything back to the Lodge in the form of an examination? If you've no mentor or instructor, how did you learn the catechism? How do you know that you even have it right?
I have the Wis green book, EA exam. It has the exam in it, about half of it is in cypher but the Internet is a place of few secrets...... But you are correct, I have little chance of any kind of success, it is disheartening.
I wouldn't get discouraged. I will remind you of your obligation, stay away from the internet when attempting to learn your catechism. While it may be a place of few secrets, it's also full of information from those who have WILLFULLY violated their obligations. Not to mention, incorrect information. I understand this must be frustrating for you. If you can't get in touch with your Worshipful Master to get proper instruction, then there are certainly more aggressive means to light a fire under his arse to help you.
The next Lodge meeting is tomorrow night, I will be there to talk to them. I spoke to my Brother from work just now and he is going to talk to the WM tomorrow night before I get there.
