Official Visits and Elvis

This week was filled with Official Visits, yard work, oh, and Elvis!

As Master of Everett Lodge #137 and past District Deputy of District 8, I was looking forward to my OV of the Deputy of the Grand Master in District 8, VWB Larry Foley.  Was I going to make it a pain in the butt for him, was I going to give him a hard time, was I going to make his first OV memorable, or was I simply going to respect him, his office, and the Administrative side of Masonry?  Of course I made what I believe is the right choice and provided him all the support and assistance that a Worshipful Master should provide to the Deputy in this situation.  We had a great meeting and had some fantastic discussion about membership.

Then I had the opportunity to be a side liner at the next OV at Damascus Lodge and of course I chose the path of giving him a hard time at that meeting!  As he would (and did) graciously do to me in previous years.  I was not disruptive of his visit, but I did give him some barbs when he was finished and at other time during the evening.

The next couple of evenings were spent power washing the wood on my deck and prepping it for refinishing.  We spent some time at the Jurisdictional Representative retreat for the Rainbow girls.  As the Assistant Director, Robin got to spend some quality time with the JReps and with the Director all while putting on a great retreat.

Saturday I picked Robin up from the retreat, after spending all morning power washing the deck, and we drove up to Lynden-Ferndale International Lodge for the Hands Across the Border celebration.  We enjoyed and excellent prime rib dinner and then got to watch Elvis for the next couple of hours.  Very nice meeting and socializing with the Brethren from that area and the Brethren from British Columbia and Yukon.

After all the travels I again get time to reflect on the days and ponder about the state of things.  Not just in Masonry, but in society in general.  One of the things I have heard a lot about, and I am very much a fan of, is civility dialogues.  We need to be able to talk about the issues facing us, we need to be able to have a conversation and not turn it into a yelling match.  I do not watch Political analyst programs because it always ends up in yelling matches and people talking over each other.  Same is true for "Sports" news programs.  I do not watch those either, and for the same reason.  The Stephen A. Smiths and Max Kellermans of the world ruin good conversation with their holier than thou attitudes that almost always turn into "I am right, you are wrong".  With all of that being said, I think we need to take civility dialogue one step further.  Not only do you have to be able to have a conversation about issues, you MUST be willing to listen, and about all, compromise.  Until we can bring back the art of compromise, we will not move forward and grow as a nation.  Without civility and compromise, our divide will continue to grow.

Food for thought, Be All In

Fraternally,
VWB Steve Martin
Grand Lecturer

Corner Stones and Storms

Kind of a quiet week for travel, but exciting storms that provided plenty of noise!

The weekend started pretty early on Saturday with a trip to Edmonds at 6am to pick up Grand Orator,  VWB Jimmy and then head on down to Mossy Rock for a Corner Stone ceremony at the local Fire Station.  I did not have my camera so I did not get any photos from the event, but I would like to thank RW Ed for capturing a great photo of my ear.  For some reason the theme from Looney Tunes was going through my head the entire rest of the day!  Those that were there will know why.

After the Corner Stone was a very unique installation for me, and I think for many others.  Centralia Lodge held its installation of officers at the Centralia fair grounds outdoors.  It was an open installation and situated right next the a major road with all kinds of signs and banners promoting the event.  It was an opportunity to invite the public and be very visible to let people know we are still here and we are not a secret society.

This is where the storms come in...on the drive from Centralia to Edmonds we kept hearing the buzz over the radio that usually signifies lightning strikes.  We never saw the lightning or heard the thunder, but it was pretty clear there was lightning somewhere close by.  By the time we got to Edmonds we were starting to see the lightning as we dropped off VWB Jimmy.  Then the drive home to Monroe was pretty eventful and once we got home, wow!  We watched and listened to one of the most spectacular and loud storms we have ever experienced.  There were several strikes that were very close to the house and shook windows and loose items.

I was very glad the storm happened on Saturday evening, because Sunday was the 4th annual Rainbow Color Walk.  This year the charity is Feeding America and they raised almost $11,000 and added over 500 items of food to donate.  The event is co-sponsored by Sultan-Monroe Lodge and raises money not only for the Rainbow Girls annual service project, but also the lodges education and charitable fund.  The numbers are not final yet, but the lodge should receive around $3000 for its funds.  Once again MW Jim came out to help add some color to the event, and he did not disappoint!  If you want to avoid getting doused with color, avoid Jim, LOL.

Sunday afternoon was a drive down to Lacey to spend some time with my Mother in Law, who is living in a memory care facility and had a bit of a struggle the last few days.

Then Monday off to Everett Lodge #137 where we had the Official Visit of the Deputy of the Grand Master, VWB Larry.  I felt like the meeting went very well and I led a discussion on membership numbers.  What are the issues and how do we fix them?  We all know the numbers are going down, but how do we change that, and as was brought up during the discussion, do we need to?  One of the primary goals of Masonry is to make good men better, do you need a lodge room or 30 or 40 masons to make you a better man?  With more people involved, you have more opportunity to receive and share those things that make you a better man, but there is also more distractions taking away from making you a better man.  One of the major benefits of membership is financial, but the basic foundation of education and fraternalism may not be directly related to the number of people involved.  Many hands make the work easier, but how much of the work is truly part of the Masonic institution?  We talk about making our members wiser, better and consequently happier.  Where do we mention cook dinners, have events, and give away stuff?  Now don't get me wrong, I enjoy those as much as the next guy, but are they truly a requirement to make a good man better?

Food for thought, until next time Be All In.

Fraternally,

VWB Steve Martin

Grand Lecturer

From Bellingham, WA to Albany, OR and all points between

Another week gone by and another week of amazing travel!

The new week started out on Tuesday with a Entered Apprentice Degree at my home Lodge, Sultan-Monroe #160.  An excellent degree was performed with the presiding Master VWB Larry Foley.  We had the pleasure of listening to VWB Cary Cope deliver the Master's Lecture, who knows when I will hear that again from him.  I had the distinct honor and privilege of conducting the new candidate as the Senior Deacon.  Welcome Brother Nathan Davis!

Wednesday was another photo shoot for a spectacular young lady and Senior at Sammamish High School.  Chloe was a fantastic model and we had a great time at the Bellevue Botanical Garden.  Kind of an odd flashback as the garden is located right next door to an Elementary school that I attended many years ago.

We then traveled over to a good brother's house on Thursday to surprise him with a birthday party that he knew nothing about.  Congratulations Hassib, we had a great time at your party, and the food?  OMG, THE FOOD!  It just kept coming and I just could not stop!  😆

Then in was Anna's turn for Senior portraits on Friday afternoon.  She wanted golden hour, nature, and photos to make people take notice!  Well...as luck would have it, oddly it was overcast in Seattle, who would have thought?  We had a beautiful location at the North Creek Park, and an amazing model, so all I needed was a little sun to complete her request.  I didn't get any, so I made my own!

Saturday it was off to Bellingham, well actually Demming, to shoot a wedding of some very good friends.  Renae and Dave were gettin hitched and we were there to capture it for them.  The wedding was held at a beautiful location in the woods that is a horse ranch and a wedding venue.  The Misty River Ranch was an amazing location, and highly recommended.  Before the wedding we had the pleasure of getting caught up with and old friend, Annie Saunderson.  Robin had the pleasure of driving from Monroe to Demming twice, because I forgot some things at home that we needed.

After a long drive home after the wedding we got up early Sunday morning and headed for the Amtrak station to go to Albany, OR and see Alex and Emma!  We got to spend Sunday night, all day Monday and then Tuesday morning with them.  We drove from Albany to Newport and spent the day at the beach enjoying the scenery and the weather as it was mid 70's and sunny all day.  We started at the Yaquina Bay lighthouse and while getting the camera all setup, I dropped it...yup, dropped it.  Luckily(?) I had the circular polarizer attached and it took the brunt of the fall.  Sadly, that meant no polarizing filter for the day of photos.  I still think they came out nice.

As I work hard on perfecting the installation parts of our ritual, I am looking forward to travelling around the state to the different Masonic events where I can promote the ritual competition.  Now that the filing date has passed, I can say that I have made myself available for the position of Junior Grand Warden for the Grand Lodge of Washington.  I look forward to meeting many brothers and sharing my thoughts on the future of the Fraternity and hearing their thoughts as well.  

On the Horizon is a trip to Mossy Rock and Centralia for a Cornerstone ceremony and an installation of officers.

End of August

Many lodges are dark now, so I have been able to do some personal fun things, like photo shoots lately.  As I said in my last post, I was able to photograph a Make A Wish presentation party for 4 year old JoJo.  Sometimes the term "life changing" is over used, and in this case I may not say it was life changing, but it certainly was "path affirming", if that makes sense?  It has helped us see that the path we have chosen is certainly one that makes life a little better for people, and greatly increases the joy in my life to be able to provide the little bit of happiness to others.

After the Make A Wish party, we headed to Bellingham to do some photos at Larrabee State Park.  We met up with Past Grand Worthy Advisor Taylor and headed to the park for some golden hour time.  I love finding new locations and the fact that I can usually find a Rainbow Girl, majority or active, nearby to test the location out is a huge bonus!

Monday was a day off from work, so what do we do?  We grab another majority Rainbow Girl and head to a new location to see what we can do!  Sophie joined us on this day and we headed to Rattlesnake Lake!  Stunning location and great model made for some amazing photographs.

Tuesday was back to Lodge in Sultan-Monroe and being still the summer "dark" season attendance was limited, but we got some important work done with the group we had.  As always, the conversations at Sultan-Monroe were extremely interesting and educational.  We discussed some Masonic topics in Lodge, then continued those conversations in our after hours discussions.

Wednesday I attended a meeting with the District 8 Resource team where we learned about the direction the VWB Larry Foley wanted to go and provided input and recommendations for the future of the resource team.  Looking forward to great things from our Deputy!

Friday night was time for us.  Robin and I attended the Mariner game and cheered them on to victory!  There was music and fireworks after the game.  With all we do, we do try and do things for us too, that is so very important.

Saturday off to Leavenworth for a Cornerstone at the Peshastin-Dryden Elementary School.  What a great facility this is.  Remodeled are renovated to bring education to a new level.   After the cornerstone we returned to Everett for the Scottish Rite night at the Aquasox.  It was great time for fellowship, brotherhood, and FIREWORKS!  The Sox unfortunately gave up 6 runs in the 9th inning and lost, but it was still a great night!

The last event of the weekend was off to the East side of the mountains on Sudnay for a wedding!  Congratulations to Majority Rainbow Girl Khatya on a beautiful lakeside ceremony.  Bonus of the day, we got to see her sisters Ahnja and Rhya who now live in Arizona but were back for the wedding.

I so look forward to all of these, but like I said, no matter how much good you are doing, no matter what you are doing to make a difference in the world in your little ways, always remember to take time to take care of you!  All too often I will forget to put things on the calendar and someone will call and ask about a Masonic event or a Photography shoot, and I didn't put the special day for us on the calendar so I fill it with something else.  If you are always busy like us, schedule that time for yourselves and don't forget to put it in writing on the calendar!

Until Next Time!  Be ALL In!

Bikers for JoJo

Pretty quiet time for Masonry since the last post. 

Saturday started with a trip down to Chehalis for a train ride with Brothers and their spouses hosted by Karl E Warren Railroad Lodge in Skykomish.  The weather was nice and the train ride had some beautiful scenery.

I then drove north and attended the Torchlight Fellowcraft Degree at the Masonic Park in Granite Falls.  If you have never been, I highly recommend it.  All done by torchlight after the sun goes down and then excellent fellowship at the park afterwards.

I had the honor and privilege to photograph a Make-A-Wish presentation and it is an incredible reminder of how precious life is.

You can learn more about JoJo here.  https://www.harley-davidson.com/us/en/about-us/hd-news/2019/share-your-motorcycle-travels-with-girl-with-rare-disease.html

To all my Widows Sons rider brothers, maybe you can help out and post some #Bikers4JoJo photos.

Life is precious brothers, make the most of it!

Grand Lecturer 2019-20

Greetings Brethren All!

I decided to create a blog for my year as Grand Lecturer to document my travels throughout our Grand Jurisdiction and maybe remember some of it in the process!

Right after Grand Lodge I attended the Annual Strawberry feed in Auburn, YUM!

Since Grand Lodge I have attended OES Grand Chapter and Rainbow Girls Grand Assembly

Robin and I attended a corner stone ceremony in Sequim for the Sequim Museum & Arts.  It was a beautiful day and attended by many masons and local citizens.  The history of Sequim is extremely well represented at the Museum and will be a treasure for years to come.  We got to hear from Matt Dryke, who is a Sequim Pioneer family member and Gold Medalist from the 1984 Olympics.

We took off for Spokane to a corner stone ceremony at the Hutton Settlement, a place for Children to live and Grow, providing a safe and healthy living opportunity for children in need of long term housing.  I was able to participate as Acting Senior Grand Warden and had the privilege of delivering the Oration from VWB Jimmy Norton.  It was a very moving day.

I attended the open air degree in Granite Falls and served as the Secretary for opening, the Senior Deacon for the Conferral, and the 1st Ruffian in the Drama.  The degree was attended by approximately 150 brothers and it was a very well done degree.  The day was a great success!  Congratulations to Bros. Will Lorenzini, Larry Jaquot, and Mike Fee on being raised to the sublime degree of a Master Mason.

This year I am revitalizing the ritual competition.  We will have the standard SW competition open to all first time Senior Wardens.  There will be a team competition consisting of the WM, SW, and JW which is open to any Master Mason, as long as all three are members of the same lodge.  Finally, we will have an individual lecture competition with the participant doing the Apron Lecture, and the Geometry Lecture.  This competition is open to any Fellowcraft Mason or Master Mason.

In order for the Fraternity to survive, we must be committed and find reasons to be involved, rather than reasons to sit by.  We must provide Masonic education in all things, from ritual and esoteric, to fraternalism and family, to the administration of our lodges.  All of these are important to thrive.  I like to use the 5-4-3 for the 47th problem of Euclid.  The 5 being the foundation of it all and the ritual and esoteric, the 4 being the brotherhood and family, and the 3 being the administrative side of things.  It can be argued that 5 and 4 could be switched, and I can live with that too!  Find reasons to be involved, instead of reasons to stay away, Be All In!

Until Next Time!

Fraternally,
Steve Martin
Grand Lecturer