Will Somebody Please Press The 'Reboot' Button?

This is my second attempt at writing a blog. My first attempt never got anywhere, but after talking to my good friend, W.B. Nick Johnson, who has been blogging succesfully for a few years now at www.millennialfreemason.com, he encouraged me to give it another try, especially since I am now the Lodge Education Officer for Red Wing Lodge #8 (www.redwinglodge.org,) in Red Wing, MN.

I know that there are probabay hundreds, if not thousands, of blogs out there dedicated to Freemasonry, and probably just as many of them dedicated to spreading anti-Masonic ideas and views. While I profess that I am a 'rookie' when it comes to blogging, I am going to do my best to share ideas, links, topics, etc., that will, hopefully, make the reader think and generate discussion here and in your local Lodges.

I have been a Mason since I was 19. I petitioned Star in the East Lodge #33 in Owatonna, MN., while I was a senior at Owatonna Senior High School. Two of my teachers were Masons and were my first-line signers. Freemasonry existed in my family, but had skipped a few generations. While I was going through the Degrees, unbeknowst to me, my older brother Steven was also going through the Degrees in a Lodge in Maine. I ended up becoming Master when I was at the tender young age of 21. I enjoyed my stint, but I will be the first to admit I was not very good. Mad Jack from Grizzly Adams would have called me a 'greenhorn.' But after taking a few years off from Masonry due to getting married, moving, and finding a new job, I was able to find a new home in Red Wing Lodge #8, where I served a back-to-back term as Master a few years ago. This time I was more mature and ready for the responsibilities of the Master's Station.

I have always found the historical connection to Freemasonry to be fascinating, and while I do not have a huge interest in esoterics, I am finding myself liking the Ritual, more and more, each time I hear it done or participate in the Ritual myself. The beautiful thing about Freemasonry is that it provides a lot of different interests for everyone!

I promise to do my best to provide topics that we all will find interesting, and if we do tackle one that may be controversial, that we please keep it civil. I am not a huge believer in the gratuitous use of profanities and I hope that you all will respect that. As I always tell juvenile inmates where I work, "There are thousands of words in the English language to describe things. Why limit yourself to just two or three!"

Thanks again for signing on and I hope to be able to spread a little more of the Light that Freemasonry provides for the world!