Civil Service Lodge No. 148

WHICH AM I?

I watched them tearing a building down
A gang of men in a busy town.
With a 'yo-heave-ho' and a throaty swell
They swung a beam and the side wall fell.

I asked the foreman, "Are these men skilled,
Like the ones you'd hire if you had to build?
He gave me a laugh and said, "No indeed
Common labour's all I need.
I can easily wreck in a day or two
What builders have taken a year to do!"

I thought to myself as I went my way
Which of these roles have I tried to play?
Am I the builder who works with care
Measuring life with a rule and square?

Am I shaping my deeds to a well-made plan
Patiently doing the best I can?
Or am I the wrecker who stalks the town
Content with the labour of tearing down?

Which am I? Which are you?

Each of us is but a single stone in a structure that is so much greater than we can envisage and yet we must be of the highest quality possible if the ultimate structure is to be its best.

In Freemasonry we seek to moralize on different tools which could be used to shape such stones. Some of these tools invite a brother to reflect on his own attitude towards life, his wise use of time, his response to his conscience, and the positive contribution he can make to the society of which he is a member.