Ephemeral Masonry

Masonry, in Canada; a young country, neither formal or romantic.  There is an excitement that reflects youthful self-consciousness as if we are waiting, expectant of beauty and greatness to come.  Imagining as we do how it is possible to enhance the natural beauty of our three ocean shores; the bon homme of a francophone heritage,the hospitality of the Maritimes.  Our middle earth is full of lakes and forests that remind us how close we are to earliest pioneers. We visit the prairies and experience a vastness of space under star filled skies and calm peace.  To be reminded to revere life, we  have the arctic to learn the sound of our heartbeat, to reflect on the smallness of mankind, to respect the power of nature.  As if G-d has reached up out of the earth, the west coast mountains are our ladder between heaven and earth- it overwhelms.  How to think our future could ever overcome  anything when we live in such beauty- but we try. Our nation's symbols wildlife tell the world about our soul as a people. It isn't a declaration or fear that binds a man to this country. It is respect- for a lake, a river, a shore, a sky, a forest, a mountain - that understanding binds us.

Paris doesn't have mountains.  You can't hear your heartbeat in London. But when they were 159 years old, compared to us today- they were messy.   Athens, Rome, Madrid, Moscow, Bejing, are all places out of the past.  Canada is still becoming.  Masonry is a time traveller, convincing dreamers and pragmatists to follow a map of the mind leaving a legacy of good deeds. How could masonry escape youthful exuberance?   

In the 21st century, we might be Quixotic but what is wrong with thinking that you can make the world a better place and develop character along the way?