A Traveling Man
You may have heard it before — a Freemason is often called a traveling man. You may have also heard, “a Mason always never travels alone”. This alludes to the fact that we are welcome everywhere we go. Whether you are traveling across town, in an airport, even to other countries, you may be surrounded by other Masons and never even know it.
Traveling to other lodges is at the heart of Masonry. Whether it is to another lodge across town or to a far away place, we are welcomed with open arms and open hearts. A Mason may suspect that someone they are speaking with might be a Mason but not be sure. A few key words later and a warm conversation becomes recognition of a brother and all of the hospitality that can be afforded a brother will be extended.
While Freemasonry is a lifelong journey, our craft opens up doors
to experiences. Maybe you want to go to a special place on vacation but you don’t really know if it’s a good idea? Reach out and ask a brother for his recommendation and you may find your plans are validated, or maybe you’ll find a stark warning as he wards off what would otherwise be impending danger. Maybe you’ll be invited into an event that could be joyous or even life changing. Maybe you’ll see a sight that’s off the tourist path.
When we travel to a different lodge and attend their monthly meeting, perhaps a signature event of theirs, or even a candidate degree, we find inspiration. Each lodge may do things differently and sometimes that provides inspiration that we can take home and consider integrating into our own lodges. Traveling is at the heart of who we are. Without traveling we don’t learn how to improve and we can’t grow. There are times when we travel to other lodges and return to our mother lodges with fresh ideas or maybe even a new twist on an old tradition.