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Dear Brothers, Sisters, "Moms," "Dads," Friends, and Supporters:
To all of those who celebrate, we wish a very Happy and Blessed Easter. Christus surréxit! - Surréxit vere, allelúja!
The past forty days, and Holy Thursday and Good Friday services have given a lot of time for reflection and contemplation and I have drafted several different iterations of this message reflecting on the importance of servant leadership, the example set by St. John the Evangelist, the dangers of the mob mentality, how John 15:13 fits into our lives. If I take another term as a Commander of a Knights Templar Commandery, I have a year worth of programs. They did not 100% fit the DeMolay audience:
Yet, it was when I was making my pysanky this morning that the message I wanted to share with our DeMolays today is three fold:
1. Honor your Traditions. Regardless if you celebrate Easter or another holiday, find your family traditions, learn how to do them, and honor them. Talk to your parents, your grandparents and learn how and why you do your family traditions. I can never make pysanky as nicely as my Aunt, or my kid brother, but using the kistka, beeswax and traditional dyes grounds me in an important way with the tradition carried down my father's side of the family for generations.
2. Early steps have a lasting impact. When you look at pysanky they are beautiful to behold. Yet, they did not start that way. Our lives are like pysanky We start out as a plain white egg, and the decisions we make early on, and what we add to it shapes our lives for the future. If you make a mistake on the first layer and you don't fix it quickly, it will impact everything that happens after that. Slow and deliberate guidance sets us up for success. Each pysanky is different and unique, like each of us. Each brings happiness and joy. I've included some photos below.
3. We must live and love as a changed Easter people. For those of us who celebrate Easter, if the miracle of Easter does not change how we live our lives on a daily basis, then we diminish the miracle. For the Apostles of Christ in the days after the resurrection they were a changed people. Going forth and sharing the good news, traveling to Emmaus together, facing scorn for their beliefs, and yet they persisted. We must follow their example and live lives that show love for one another. In the Masonic Family, we know that all of humanity are our siblings, under the fatherhood of a Supreme Being. Let's make sure we live like that.
Friends, may this Easter Season be truly filled with love, family and many fond members.
your brother,
peter
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