From Darkness into Light

I am not a blogger. I do not spend endless hours ranting and raving on topics both important and irrelevant. Before I became a Mason, my life was consumed with endless hours of work, going to meetings, my son’s sports and I tried to fit in a little quality time with the wife now and again. I am a simple man who enjoys the company of family and friends. Taking the family on holidays and announcing sporting events.

I am also not a writer. My writing consists mainly of business missives. I relay technical information, document events, and convince people to do things. These are not the stuff of legends. I will never be considered a “Voice of My Generation”.

I am however a recovering Alcoholic. It is by the Grace of God and the fellowship of an organization of likeminded individuals that I am here today. Eight years of discovery. Eight years of growth. Eight years of work. It is the single most important gift God has granted me. Without my sobriety I could never have become a Mason. I wear my sobriety as a badge of honour. I will not apologize for that.

In my early journey as a Mason I am seeing remarkable parallels to my early steps in sobriety. From mentors to meetings, fellowship to faith, the correlation is uncanny. Each organization, take those who are in darkness and bring them to the Light. It could not be understood by one who has not walked the road of recovery. It is warm and comfortable like an old coat. It feels like home.

There is a truth in recovery that I feel is as true to the Alcoholic as it is to the Mason. Step 12: “Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.”

I read this Step once again and it was like reading it for the first time. We are taught that our Alcoholism is just a symptom of the defects of character that result from the separation from our relationship with God. When I work with those lost souls who have just found sobriety I am reminded of my early journey. I remember the hopelessness. I remember the confusion. I remember the worthlessness. I remember that I am STILL an Alcoholic.

I remember the Great Men who gave freely of their time to help me along. Sharing their experience, strength and hope with me. They always said they were spending time with me as part of their own journey and that the work involved was my own. They were willing to help me grow but the growth was my own and they wanted no credit for that. Are you starting to see the similarities?

I have had the honour of meeting many Great Men in my young career as a Mason. They preach from the same pulpit as my early sobriety mentors. Each says that the Degree Nights are the most important to them each year. I think it might have to do with Step 12. They are reminded of their early careers as Masons. The sense of wonder. The passion. The awakening. It revitalizes the ambition to journey onwards.

I decided to write this blog to chronicle my early career. I am writing it for me. Writing to ensure that I remember that I am STILL a Mason years from now. So I can still hold that wonder, that passion, that awakening. If I can benefit other Masons who may have lost that feeling, that is an added benefit.

I will make no apologies for what I write. The thoughts and feelings are my own and I am comfortable in that. If I am mistaken or misguided, if I am confused or ignorant, please feel free to talk to me. It is when two like minded individuals come together in exploration of truth that growth occurs. I become a better Mason by learning from those further on their journey.

In the coming days, weeks, months and years I look forward to sharing my journey. To stay sober I must lead a life of “Rigorous Honesty”. I will be as open and honest as I can. It is my prayer that this may be not only an avenue for reflection in the future but a basis for dialogue in the present. As a Mason I walk in the footsteps of Great Men. It is however nice to pick their brains once in a while.