Trestleboard Palm Springs Masonic Lodge September 2018 September s Issue: Master s Message Chef s Menu Calendar Brother Harry S. Truman, 33rd President of the United States, gave what gift to Palm Springs Masonic Lodge?
Hello Brethren, from the northeast this is your Senior Deacon Bill Roose. As this is my first entry into the trestleboard, I would like to talk about the difference between Operative and Speculative Masons. Or DOING AND THINKING. Our lodge has changed a great deal in the past three years, In my opinion, for the better. We are a cohesive unit with good solid goals to improve the overall experience during our lodge time. Clean tight stated meeting, fantastic meals and plenty of friendship. This has come about because many are thinking about how to give our brethren a reason to come to lodge. Then, Doing something about it. We speculate on the problems then taking positive actions or operatively fix what need fixing. We have plans and goals, to keeps us on course, we adjust our heading if needed. We have a one- year plan, that is reviewed frequently. We are working on a five- year plan for long- term goals. So what I want to ask you is? Do you like what you see? Do you want to be a part of this team? Are you a THINKER OR A DOER? We need both. But we especially, need members who can show up and help, take part and be involved.
September 2018 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 2 3 Labor Day 4 Stated Meeting Social 6:00 PM Dinner 6:30 PM Meeting 7:30 PM 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Hall Association 6:00 PM Trivium Group 7:00 PM 16 17 18 OSI Palm Springs 6:00 PM 19 20 21 22 Autumn Begins 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 Executive Meeting or Fellowship TBD 30
From the East, I recently had a talk with our Senior Warden Ted Parker about a number of things. Ted has been noticeably absent from lodge as of late and as you may or may not know he has his own business and has become very busy with multiple building projects in different locations. Sometimes this takes up more of your time throughout the week than you would like and it begins to take you away from what you would really like to do at times. This is one of those times. I asked him how he was doing personally, how his family was, how business was going and if he thinks about Freemasonry during the day? I was glad to hear that he was doing very well personally and that this has been made easier thanks to Sonia, his wife. She fully supports him with his business and at times she is the one that tells him that he needs to take a break and just breathe. His family is also doing well and has its own unique set of challenges that all families are faced with over time. His business is doing well and this is the main reason we have not seen him as consistently as we would like but assured me that it is definitely on his mind and reassured me that he has not abandoned us and that he will be there for us. When it came to talking about Freemasonry he mentioned a couple things that impressed me. He described to me a challenge that all contractors face sooner or later and that is not getting paid for a project on time in order to pay the people that he has contracted to get some of the job done. I asked him if he thought King Solomon ever faced this problem of not being able to pay the Craft their wages and Ted had a very insightful answer. He said that King Solomon more than likely thought of that problem long before the stonemasons got out there to Jerusalem. King Solomon more than likely had lodging for these craftsmen. KS more than likely had men who would prepare meals for these workmen and their families so he could meet the most basic and important needs we have. Then Ted said that in this way if wages were short or delayed the bellies of the men were full and they had a place to live in. KS must have surrounded himself with the best people to help him see these challenges before they even manifested and along with the famed wisdom of KS that we learn about in our lectures and also in the Old Testament, it is no wonder that this man is still talked about to this day. But, Ted said, KS must have received his wisdom in the hours when he meditated, when he entered the silence and was able to find the answers within himself. We need to do the same when it comes to our personal lives and especially when we are at lodge. If the lodge is a representation of ourselves, then every time we enter it we should enter it with reverence, respect and be humble so that we can receive the answers we need from our own God spark. Calendar of Events September will be busy for us as we may be ready to either initiate or pass a brother. September 4 th is our stated meeting preceded by our dinner served at 6:30pm. Then September 11 th is our Hall Association meeting at 6pm followed by our Trivium Discussion Group which will be focusing on the US Constitution in honor of Constitutional Observance month. September 18 th is a possible degree night at 7:30pm and on September 25 th possibly another degree. Come to lodge and see what s going on. Fraternally, Cesar Rubio - Master
As the Sun is in the West, Greetings Brethren! My message for this month has to do with King Solomon s Temple and the three separate places that the Craftsman met. As we learn about in our lectures, EA s met on the ground floor, FC s met in the MC and MM met in Sanctum Sanctorum. If we take the temple to be symbolical of ourselves then we understand that it s the mind that we are trying to improve and this happens in three stages. First you have to sit down at the Masters feet and listen. At this point in your journey you re in a watch, listen and learn phase. You must clear your mind so that you can learn what is being taught to you. Too many times we get new initiates and for whatever reason we don t relay this very important principle to them. To be able to sit there and watch, listen and learn takes discipline, commitment, dedication and a sincere desire for knowledge. The second stage is learning to apply some of this new knowledge to your everyday life with truth, integrity and honor. We sometimes forget that we as Masons are making men that have honor, integrity and deal in truth. When this is done on a consistent basis then you develop trust among the brethren and your relationships become ever deeper, more serious and honest. The final phase would be constantly working from this experience and applying this knowledge which some would say is wisdom. This is where the Masters go to meditate and ask for wisdom. They go into the SS or Holy of Holies to communicate. Some say that they would communicate with God but I would say that they were actually communicating with themselves because if you look hard enough you eventually find the answer you were looking for within yourself. Men need to stop looking outside of themselves and asking other people how they should live, what they should wear, who they should follow, what to watch and just learn to go within, still their minds and listen for the answer. We ve all come to Freemasonry looking for answers but the answer was always within you. When you came knocking at the door of the temple, you didn t do it without first thinking about it. You put thought into it, you asked questions about it and then you decided but that decision did not come from without. It came from within. From within you, your own mind. And that spark that animates us all led you here and you listened. What came you here to do? To learn to subdue my passion, and improve myself in masonry Meditate on that brethren. Have you done any of that? Have you truly worked on it? In lodge we can work on it together and achieve our goals like we said we would. This will take work, induvial, hard and honest work. Apologies for not being as present as I would like to be at lodge but I will keep my commitments to the lodge and my brothers and work hard to help make our lodge in our own image. Ted Parker Senior Warden
Raised to the Sublime Degree of Master Mason: Charles Aboria 1951 Charles Ash PM 1965 James Dick 1946 Joseph Di Puzo 1996 James Leighton PM 1955 De Mill Skelton PM 1963 Rudy Velasco 2012 Daniel Woodman 2012 Congratulations Brethren
Brethren, if you did not attend the August Dinner you missed out on something really special. Brother Guillermo Morales and his lovely wife Maria along with their nephew, made a meal that will not be forgotten anytime soon! Guillermo and Maria thank you so much for a wonderful time. Here are just a few pictures from the evening; What did you Miss? Chips, Salsa & Guacamole ~ Caesar Salad, Homemade Dressing~ Homemade Tamale s Rice & Beans ~ Flan & Pineapple Cake ~ Hand made Mexican Candy! What a Meal!
-From the Secretary s Desk Greetings brethren, To keep in line with our Master s State of the Lodge address, you may be interested in knowing the following information. Your lodge is alive and doing quite well! At the time of this writing we have the following to share. As of January of this year: We have experienced a gain in membership by (9) nine members. (2) Two were just recently initiated, (3) three affiliated with your lodge from other lodges, and (4) four were restored to good standing. We have had (14) fourteen losses. (5) Five withdrawals, (5) five suspended for non-payment of dues, and (4) four of our members have moved on; to that undiscovered country, from who s bourne, no traveler returns. Our total membership is (104) one hundred four. We have (8) eight Entered Apprentices, (1) one FellowCraft, and (95) ninety-five Master Masons. Out of that (104) total members, only (13) thirteen of you have not paid your dues for this year, that s just a little over 8% of our current membership. This is actually pretty darn good! To those of you who have paid your dues, your Treasurer and I wish to extend a heartfelt Thank You! for helping to support your lodge. For some of you, this is more than likely an oversight, but there may be some of you who are having fi- nancial issues. If this is the case, please do not hesitate to reach out to any one of your elected officers. The last thing we want to have happen is to suspend you for nonpayment of dues, so please reach out to one of us! I ve included my cell phone number below for your convenience. Recently, some of your elected officers paid a home visit to a brother. We found he was in great spirit, healthy, active, and engaged. However, the visiting officers found he needed assistance with organizing his home and making his home a little safer for him to move about. The officers will be organizing some work days for this brother s home, and we hope to see many Masons turn out to assist this brother. Your help is greatly needed and appreciated! Our traditions and ritual tells us we are to assist our brothers whithersoever dispersed around the globe. If you re still living in the valley and would appreciate the help, again, please reach out to me so we can live up to our obligations. If you would like to attend lodge but aren t comfortable driving at night we have several Entered Apprentices who are chomping at the bit to get involved, so please take advantage of this offer. The bottom line is simply; We would like to see you in lodge again. In June we initiated our (2) two newest Masons, and brethren, the degree work was exemplary (even if I do say so). With all of the work having been done on your lodge, I believe you ll be surprised at how nice your lodge looks, and it d look even better if you started attending again. We miss you, and we DO care. Lastly- download the lodge app to your smart phone or tablet and visit your lodge website @ palmspringsmasons.org. Thanks for reading Jeffrey Bayer, P.M. Secretary 760.238.0163
Ever wonder what other lodge s charge for dues? How about membership in other organizations?
The Chef is back, The Chef is back September s Menu: Fresh Garden Salad Chef s Dressing Grilled New York Strip Steaks Seasonal Vegetables Garlic Roasted Potatoes Chef s Dessert Choice Beverage $15.00 Donation RSVP To jrg28@hotmail.com You must RSVP before 9/2/18