Angel of Light

As the sun sets
And cloud blankets Earth
I stand upon a mountain
Looking down upon
God's Creation

And like a sweetly singing angel
A voice, lucent in the dusk,
A song sings the wind,
Brushes the plains,
Kisses His Work
With gentle blessings.

And that Precious Gift,
Womb of our very civilization
Breathes deeply and sighs,
The sweet exhalation
Of God Himself.

I'll let the video speak for itself.

The Perpetual Adolescent

An interesting article in the Weekly Standard that actually dates back to March 15, 2004. It was recently brought to my attention by the Art of Manliness blog by Brett McKay. It covers manhood, maturity, the 'man boy' attitude of today's male youth (though it doesn't use that term), and how, in our youth culture in America, we are seemingly incapable of separating physical youth and energy from emotional and mental maturity. It's a long one, at seven pages, but it'll repay you in dividends. Stay with it, its worth it. Some excerpts below:

"WHENEVER ANYONE under the age of 50 sees old newsreel film of Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak of 1941, he is almost certain to be brought up by the fact that nearly everyone in the male-dominated crowds--in New York, Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland--seems to be wearing a suit and a fedora or other serious adult hat. The people in those earlier baseball crowds, though watching a boyish game, nonetheless had a radically different conception of themselves than most Americans do now. A major depression was ending, a world war was on. Even though they were watching an entertainment that took most of them back to their boyhoods, they thought of themselves as adults, no longer kids, but grown-ups, adults, men.

[snip]

The increasing affluence the United States enjoyed after World War II, extending into the current day, also contributed heavily to forming the character I've come to think of as the perpetual American adolescent. Earlier, with less money around, people were forced to get serious, to grow up--and fast. How quickly the Depression generation was required to mature! How many stories one used to hear about older brothers going to work at 18 or earlier, so that a younger brother might be allowed to go to college, or simply to help keep the family afloat! With lots of money around, certain kinds of pressure were removed. More and more people nowadays are working, as earlier generations were not, with a strong safety net of money under them. All options opened, they now swim in what Kierkegaard called "a sea of possibilities," and one of these possibilities in America is to refuse to grow up for a longer period than has been permitted any other people in history.

[snip]

Two of the great television sitcom successes of recent years, "Seinfeld" and "Friends," though each is different in its comic tone, are united by the theme of the permanent adolescent loose in the big city. One takes the characters in "Seinfeld" to be in their middle to late thirties, those in "Friends" in their late twenties to early thirties. Charming though they may be, both sets of characters are oddly stunted. They aren't quite anywhere and don't seem to be headed anywhere, either. Time is suspended for them. Aimless and shameless, they are in the grip of the everyday Sturm und Drang of adolescent self-absorption. Outside their rather temporary-looking apartments, they scarcely exist. Personal relations provide the full drama of their lives. Growth and development aren't part of the deal. They are still, somehow, in spirit, locked in a high school of the mind, eating dry cereal, watching a vast quantity of television, hoping to make ecstatic sexual scores. Apart from the high sheen of the writing and the comic skill of the casts, I wonder if what really attracts people to these shows--"Friends" still, "Seinfeld" in its reruns--isn't the underlying identification with the characters because of the audience's own longing for a perpetual adolescence, cut loose, free of responsibility, without the real pressures that life, that messy business, always exerts.

[snip]

The old model for ambition was solid hard work that paid off over time. One began at a low wage, worked one's way up through genuine accomplishment, grew wealthier as one grew older, and, with luck, retired with a sense of financial security and pleasure in one's achievement. But the new American ambition model features the kid multimillionaire--the young man or woman who breaks the bank not long out of college. An element of adolescent impatience enters in here--I want it, now!--and also an element of continued youthfulness.

The model of the type may be the professional athlete. "The growth of professional basketball over the past twenty-odd years, from a relatively minor spectator sport to a mass-cultural phenomenon," notes Rebecca Mead, in the New Yorker, "is an example of the way in which all of American culture is increasingly geared to the tastes of teenage boys." 

[snip]

Self-esteem, of which one currently hears so much, is at bottom another essentially adolescent notion. The great psychological sin of our day is to violate the self-esteem of adolescents of all ages. One might have thought that such self-esteem as any of us is likely to command would be in place by the age of 18. (And what is the point of having all that much self-esteem anyhow, since its logical culminating point can only be smug complacence?) Even in nursing homes, apparently, patients must be guarded against a feeling of their lowered consequence in the world. Self-esteem has become a womb to tomb matter, so that, in contemporary America, the inner and the outer child can finally be made one in the form of the perpetual adolescent.

[snip]

The greatest sins, Santayana thought, are those that set out to strangle human nature. This is of course what is being done in cultivating perpetual adolescence, while putting off maturity for as long as possible. Maturity provides a more articulated sense of the ebb and flow, the ups and downs, of life, a more subtly reticulated graph of human possibility. Above all, it values a clear and fit conception of reality. Maturity is ever cognizant that the clock is running, life is finite, and among the greatest mistakes is to believe otherwise. Maturity doesn't exclude playfulness or high humor. Far from it. The mature understand that the bitterest joke of all is that the quickest way to grow old lies in the hopeless attempt to stay forever young."

Written by Joe Epstein. My God, this man is brilliant.

The Entered Apprentice

What gave you the urge a Mason to be?
To join our Fraternity ancient and free,
Was some Brother talking a bit out of turn?
And did you cock an ear to see what you could learn?
Or did somebody give you a hint on the sly,
That you'd not be invited but would have to apply?

Or was your wife's father a Past Master no less,
Well what ever it was there isn't a doubt,
That you'd hardly a clue what the Craft's all about,
Until tonight when you stood at the door,
Divested of metal and sightless and poor.

You knelt there in prayer when the questions had ceased,
You passed round the lodge and advanced to the East.

Your vows being taken and hoodwinked no more,
You continued your journey once more round the floor.
At the north eastern corner the lesson was plain,
That Charity must be a Freemason's aim.

You retired from the Lodge, would have welcomed a rest,
But in no time at all you come back fully dressed.

You summoned your pluck standing there on the floor,
You'd endured quite a lot but there wasn't much more.

The piece-de-resistance, the Charge came at last,
And for truth and for wisdom it can't be surpassed,
You'll hear it again a hundred times yet,
And I hope that its lessons you'll never forget.

Thus your First Degree ended,
It had been quite a day,
Now please listen carefully to what I have to say,
You're one foot on the ladder, and your climb will be slow,
But when you reach the top just look humbly below.

And think of tonight when you stood at the door,
Divested of metal, sightless and poor.

Source: By Brother Walter Perkins

Quote from Pike

Found this quote on another brothers blog. It's excerpted from Pike's morals and dogma, and I thought it was poetic.

"To make honor and duty the steady beacon-lights that shall guide your life-vessel over the stormy seas of time; to do that which it is right to do, not because it will ensure you success, or bring with it a reward, or gain the applause of men, or be “the best policy,” more prudent or more advisable; but because it is right, and therefore ought to be done; to war incessantly against error, intolerance, ignorance, and vice, and yet to pity those who err, to be tolerant even of intolerance, to teach the ignorant, and to labor to reclaim the vicious—these are some of the duties of a Mason."

Albert Pike

Old Spice

This might just be the greatest commercial in the history of commercials.

EU to Hold Atheist and Freemason Summit

EUobserver / EU to hold atheist and freemason summit

I'd like to thank Bro. Hodapp for bringing this article to my attention on his blog.

Well, here's a tricky one. Apparently, every year for the past five years, the European Union leaders have met with prominent religious leaders of the European Union. They attempt to open a dialog between the government and the concerns of its religious citizens. It's a noble act, although I don't know if it would fly over here, state side. 

Not unsurprisingly, various Atheists and humanist groups throughout the EU felt they should have a fair shake at sending delegates to meet with the same people, and I'm inclined to agree with them. If its right for the religious groups to do so, then its only right to give the non religious the same benefits. 

What I do have a problem with is this: The humanists groups are having a separate meeting from the religious groups (which is possibly a good thing) and the government has invited Freemasons to send delegates to the humanist meeting.

This is a delicate and possibly precarious situation. Most of those who aren't Freemasons don't realize that there are two pretty distinct forms of Freemasonry. That of Grand Lodge Freemasonry, which has its roots in England, and is considered mainstream Freemasonry, the Masonry you see in America, and that of Grand Orient Masonry, which has its origins in France, but has a foot hold in many of the mainland European countries (including Belgium), and is also referred to as Continental Freemasonry.

There are several significant differences between these two groups. Some of the bigger factors, however, are this:

Mainstream Freemasonry

Grand Orient Freemasonry

Requires a belief in Deity, but otherwise open to all religions, regardless of who your Deity is Only open to men Teaches that one should be a loyal citizen and subject to ones government Politics and religion are not to be discussed in an open lodge. These are considered personal matters, and Masonry will not interfere with specific beliefs, not tell you what you should believe.

Allows atheists to join Allows co-Masonry, that is, the initiation of women Often gets involved in government, attempts to lobby for influence in politics, openly makes politics statements. Also often inquires into a petitioners political beliefs. Many anti Catholic movements in Europe have had prominent Orient Masons involved in them, arguably fueling some of the bad blood between Masonry and Catholicism.

The two groups had a schisms in 1877, which hasn't been rectified, nor does it look like it will be rectified anytime in the near future.

Now the significance of this is Belgium, the country that (rightly) pushed for the atheist/humanist summit in the EU, has a Grand Orient in its country. The Grand Orient of Belgium has indeed opened an office in order to:

...lobby against the rising influence of religious organisations in the EU institutions.

"The masonic orders should practice politics in the positive sense of the term: So that despite their own partisan divisions, they speak out on the side of secularism and voice their disagreement with this or that governmental or European decision," Jean-Michel Quillardet, the former Grand Master of the Grand Orient de France, told Belgian daily Le Soir in an interview out on Wednesday (17 February).

And further:

"It is necessary to impose the universal idea of the Enlightenment, which consists of the notion that people are citizens and European citizens before being Jewish, black, Maghreb, homosexual, heterosexual." 

The second article as well, I found courtesy of Bro. Hodapp's blog.

So I think its safe to assume that it was the Grand Orient of Belgium and its political lobbying office that manage to get their foot in the door of this humanist summit and have the fraternity represented.

However, this poses a number of problems for Regular Freemasonry. Most people don't know that there are two different Masonic 'factions' as it were, and won't distinguish between the two. This is going to give the religious right fodder for the debates, now seeing Freemasons associated with an atheist/humanist summit, regardless of whether or not Regular lodges sent representatives.

If they do send representatives, the association would be true. If they don't, people won't recognize the difference.

It's further complicated by Regular Freemasonry's refusal to be involved in politics. Once again, I think this wise and that the lodges should maintain this rule. According to our traditions and beliefs, we should not be involved in politics. Indeed, some Grand Lodges consider the prohibition of discussion of religion and politics in the lodge as one of our Landmarks. Most regular Masons will tell you that political lobbying isn't something that we should be involved in.

However, if we stay out of the debate, then that means Continental (or Grand Orient) Masonry effectively speaks for all Masons. That isn't true at all, technically, but they will be the only Masons publicly voicing themselves in politics. Given how divergent Continental Masonry is from Regular, their lobbying could hurt Regular Masonry if we choose not to speak up for ourselves.

Yet if Regular Masonry was represented, how should it be done? At the humanist/atheist summit? Regular Masons are all men of a religious nature, though with much variation. I highly doubt Regular lodges would be particularly welcomed at that summit. If fact, I know they wouldn't. Just read this wonderful quote from the article:

"I find it rather odd," David Pollock, president of the European Humanist Federation, told EUobserver. "Some of the Grand Lodges are secularist organisations, and strongly for separation of church and state, but they also retain all sorts of gobbledygook and myths such as the Great Architect of the Universe."

And this, also from Mr. Pollock:

"Neither religious groups nor non-religious ones have any greater claim to taking up the time of commissioners."

"But sadly we lost that battle, and so with the atheist summit, at least we're being treated equally, although I'd rather if we were there along with the churches. Instead we're being bundled off with the Freemasons." 

But if we were to be represented at the religious summit, that would once again stir of the erroneous 'Masonry is a religion' nonsense that its detractors so often employ. Besides, we don't really belong there either. We prohibit the discussion of religion and politics, should we be discussing politics directly with the government and the religious leaders of the world? I think not.

So where does that leave us? Disenfranchised by our own virtues, with irregular Masonry putting on a public face that will reflect on all Masons, whether or not its 'right'. It's not a desirable situation to be in, I think, nor one easily solved. Always those Europeans, causing the problems.

---

As a side note, can anyone imagine the political upheaval here in America if the US Congress, the President, and a special commission set up by the government had an annual summit with religious leaders mandated by law? And then started meeting with atheist/humanist groups as well? I think cable news would explode by virtue of the furor on both sides of the debate. It would be epic and frightening at the same time. (Particularly with how charged politics have been lately.)

TANSTAAFL!

Interesting video with both bits of libertarianism and a bit of commentary on The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, one of Heinlein's greatest literary achievements. Also worth noting that this canon was fired at the Heinlein's Fourth of July ceremonies for many, many years. I don't believe they really mention it, but the canon in the story was actually a reference to the Texas Revolution and The Battle of Gonzales.



Robert Heinlein tends to be one you either love or hate. Personally, I'm a fan.

The Square of Virtue

I did not compose this, rather I found it in a forum I peruse regularly posted by a moderator. It's usually listed as anonymous, although I've found some sources say it was likely composed by Joseph Fort Newton. I found it particularly affecting.


"That Fellow's On the Square"


It matters not whate'er your lot 
or what your task may be 
One duty there remains for you, 
One duty stands for me. 
Be you a doctor skilled and wise, 
Or do your work for wage, 
A labourer upon the street, 
An artist on the stage; 
One glory still awaits for you. 
One honour that is fair, 
To have men say as you pass by: 
"That fellow's on the square."

Ah, here's a phrase that stands for much, 
Tis good old English, too; 
It means that men have confidence 
In everything you do. 
It means that what you have you've earned, 
And that you've done your best 
And when you go to sleep at night 
Untroubled you may rest. 
It means that conscience is your guide, 
And honour is your care; 
There is no greater praise than this: 
"That fellow's on the square."

And when I die I would not wish 
A lengthy epitaph; 
I do not want a headstone large, 
Carved with fulsome chaff. 
Pick out no single deed of mine, 
If such a deed there be, 
To 'grave upon my monument, 
For those who come to see. 
Just this one phrase of all I choose, 
To show my life was fair: 
"Here sleepeth now a fellow who 
Was always on the square." - Anon

First Amendment Rights?

Ok, I'm not a big fan of CNN. Their news is typically redundant and mostly irrelevant. However, sometimes there is a diamond in the rough. This video is exactly that. This has nothing to do with public safety. It has everything to do with keeping the public eye off the travesty that is the Gulf right now. It's censorship enforced with felony charges.

If the current administration has any constitutional integrity at all, this rule will be reversed. However, I'm not holding out hope.

My Grandfather's Masonry

(Disclaimer: Picture is a random one off the internet - my grandfather's apron has yet to be found!)

One of, if not my first memories of Freemasonry is that of my mom finding my grandfather's apron when she was going through his belongings after he died. I didn't understand what Masonry was back then (I was very young, although sadly I don't remember the exact year), nor the symbolism of the white leather apron. She was somewhat surprised when she came across, as he was never particularly active in the lodge after he moved to Midland. (Which they did when she was very young.)

One of my other goals while visiting Midland was to find out what had happened to his apron. Though it's in her possession and not mind, I would very much appreciate it if I could have it, as it would mean a lot to me. I'd like to think that he would be pleased that I am a Mason, and if I could wear his apron it would (at least to me, ever the traditional sentimentalist) bring me a little bit closer to him. I never really had a chance to know him when he was living, and this is one connection I can have to that part of the family.

Anyway, I asked, and I was a bit disappointed. My mom wasn't entirely sure where his apron ended up. We searched a couple boxes of his old belongings that she had (which was cool in and of itself), but no avail. She said she would search another place or two for it when she had the chance. Not that there's any rush. I won't be a Master Mason for another two, maybe three months. Still... I hope the search turns out positive. I don't want to seem like I have a feeling of entitlement, but after my mom's dad, I'm the next, and to my knowledge, only Mason in the family. I'd like to see his apron at the very least, and glean from it what I can about his Masonic past and, in some way, my Masonic heritage.

I also asked about jewelry. He was, as a hobby during his working life, and as a job in his retirement, a jeweler. He made jewelry, both as a hobby and an income, and he was pretty darn good at it. Some of his faceted gems are still displayed at the Midland Gem and Mineral Society's show cases. He was a good Faceter.

That said, apparently he did not own a single piece of Masonic jewelry. Not one ring, not one pin, not even a pair of cufflinks. Which is incredibly ironic, I think. The one person who could have a ring exactly how he wanted it at an affordable price, yet he never did. It's something to think about, and I honestly am not sure what to make of it. It makes me wish I had known him better, that I might understand why he never wore any jewelry.

Anyway, all of this is on my mind as I go towards my Fellow Craft next week. Of course during band camp, but things would be too boring if they were easy.

May happy thought for this fall? Student teaching and more Masonry in my life, less school and school related worries. I think I'll be a much happier person this fall than I typically am.

A More Perfect Vision

So, during my stay in Midland this past week, one of my objectives was to go to the optometrist and have my vision checked out, both to renew my contact prescription and have new contacts ordered, and to obtain a written prescription to take to Wal-Mart so I can update the lenses on my glasses. I needed to do this because, since I typically only wear my glasses in the evening, I only have their prescription updated every two, three, sometimes four years. Needless to say, by the end of a cycle, they give me pretty bad headaches if I wear them for an extended period of time.

Now, as to why I had to do it with Wal-Mart, well, that's because of our glorious insurance program. (The insurance program that the state of Texas recommends for teachers, no less - I can't wait to see what the federal government will do.) Under this program, they will only pay for me to update my prescription once a year, and, once a year, I can update either my glasses, or my contacts. If I do both, my family has to pay for one. 

I suppose I do see the reasoning behind that. You only really need one or the other. Having the second as an option/backup is just convenience. Reasonable, I suppose.

Anyway, we apply the insurance towards the visit and my contacts (which saves an enormous amount of money) and decide to take my prescription to the Wal-Mart Vision Center, or whatever its called. It's where we always used to take me for my lenses when I was a kid, because it was always affordable. 

Well, apparently, there has been a massive lens shortage in the past few years that I'm unaware of that has inflated the price of lenses to ridiculous extremes. Having a new pair of lenses put in my old frame is going to cost $175.00. 

Granted, part of it is my fault. I'm so blind, they can't make plastic lenses for my prescription anymore. I have to go with one of the composite materials. Obviously, pricier than regular old plastic.

However, what doesn't make sense to me is the reason for such a high cost. Unlike every other practicing doctor in the world, the people who make lenses at Wal-Mart sit in a lab all day working on glasses. Perhaps the industry is simply more insane than I think, but it strikes me that they shouldn't have to pay malpractice insurance, since the can't, in any way I can fathom, do any egregious harm grinding lenses. Since malpractice insurance is one of, if not the primary, reason healthcare is as cost prohibitive as it is, and since it is in this situation not applicable, I mentally searched for another reason.

Well, what about high index polycarbonates? While the quality of the polycarbonate in these glasses is very high, I'm sure, polycarbonates in and of themselves aren't that expensive. A short list of things made of polycarbonates:

• sunglass lenses
• eyeglass lenses
• DVDs
• blue rays
• CDs
• drinking bottles/glasses
• MP3 player cases (high impact resistance)

Obviously, its a ubiquitous material. What makes the manufacturing argument even weaker is the obvious economies of scale. It doesn't take much poking around the internet to find the somewhat dubious statistic that 126 million Americans wear eyeglasses. Could find any reliable citations, but I'll accept this figure for now.

Assuming that approximately 1/3 of the US population does wear glasses, and regular plastic lenses can only be used up to a certain prescription, it would make sense that polycarbonate lenses are a relatively high, in demand item. Also, considering how much of the process is actually automated, and that optician certification is one to two years depending on the state, its not like you're paying for a neurosurgeons 9+ years of schooling, plus residency forever and a day, etc.

All these facts considered, lack of real liability, relative low cost of materials, short amount of training in terms of labor, the effect of economies of scale, and the high amount of automation used any more, I still wonder where the cost comes from. 

Considering that eyeglasses were credited with being invented in 1284, I think we should have found some way to perfect the technology by now. Perhaps even make it more affordable. Nearly 800 years after the fact, you'd think we would have perfected the technology. 

If nothing else, I now understand why the Lion's Club has eyeglasses drives so often!

Being Virtuous: Benjamin Franklin’s 13 Virtues of Life | The Art of Manliness

An excerpt from the Art of Manliness blog, an older article I stumbled upon while perusing the site that I find very interesting.

Being Virtuous: Benjamin Franklin’s 13 Virtues of Life | The Art of Manliness: "For the past 13 weeks, The Art of Manliness has been running a series entitled “The Virtuous Life.” Each week we took a look at each one of Benjamin Franklin’s 13 virtues and how men could implement them in their life.

Today “virtue” has taken on soft and effeminate connotations. But originally, the word “virtue” was inextricably connected to what it meant to be a true man. The word comes from the Latin virtus, which in turn is derived from vir, Latin for “manliness.” These days guys excuse their lack of virtue by hiding behind the excuse of being “just a guy.” Men need to do better and strive to improve themselves each day. It’s time to restore the tie between manliness and virtue.

What follows is a summary of the entire series with links to each virtue. We hope you found the series helpful and will revisit it in the future for inspiration.

Let’s get started."

Essentially, the article goes on to discuss how Franklin decided to attempt to achieve a perfect morality. He set out upon the venture at the ripe old age of... twenty! At an age when most Americans are waking up blissfully unaware of their weekend binging in college, Franklin was contemplating how he might discover the perfect morality and apply it to his own life. To this end, he developed a list of thirteen virtues that he might live his life by. The virtues are listed below and taken from a different AoM blog post found here.

---

1. “TEMPERANCE. Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.”
2. “SILENCE. Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation.”
3. “ORDER. Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have its time.”
4. “RESOLUTION. Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve.”
5. “FRUGALITY. Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; i.e., waste nothing.”
6. “INDUSTRY. Lose no time; be always employ’d in something useful; cut off all unnecessary actions.”
7. “SINCERITY. Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly, and, if you speak, speak accordingly.”
8. “JUSTICE. Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the benefits that are your duty.”
9. “MODERATION. Avoid extremes; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve.”
10. “CLEANLINESS. Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, cloaths, or habitation.”
11. “TRANQUILLITY. Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable.”
12. “CHASTITY. Rarely use venery but for health or offspring, never to dullness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another’s peace or reputation.”
13. “HUMILITY. Imitate Jesus and Socrates.”

Do note that the AoM blog has a full post dedicated to each virtue, and I strongly encourage the read. It is very much worth the time investment!

He then went on to place these virtues in a chart that he could carry with him, whereby he might track his actions throughout the day and, at the end of a day, put a tick by each of the virtues he felt he violated throughout the day, thence trying to minimize the marks daily and live a more virtuous life. (Being a printer gave him an infinite supply of these pages, which, at the time, I suppose was much to his benefit given circumstances of technology and circulation of printed materials.) An example of what it looked like below:

(I snagged the gif from this website, which is linked in the initial AoM post if anyone is interested.)

You notice that at the top of the chart, the work industry and his brief description is present. That is because each week, he would pick a different virtue to focus on throughout the week, disciplining himself in one particular virtue for an extended period of time while, simultaneously, working on all. 

On more excerpt from the second AoM post:

While Franklin never accomplished his goal of moral perfection, and had some notable flaws (womanizing and his love of beer probably gave him problems with chastity and temperance), he felt he benefited from the attempt at it.

Tho’ I never arrived at the perfection I had been so ambitious of obtaining, but fell far short of it, yet I was, by the endeavour, a better and a happier man than I otherwise should have been if I had not attempted it.

I find the whole article and concept fascinating. We, as a society, don't seem to have many virtues that we regard highly, nor do we spend any time in a child's education stressing virtues for fear that we might offend someone's sensibilities on the state dollar. As a result, we are rarely a society of virtues.

We are a society of laws. However, this is a far cry from a society of virtues. Laws are enforced upon you, virtues are taken upon oneself.

After reading through these, I felt that I should, in some fashion, take the 'Franklin challenge' of sorts onto myself. I may, in fact, simply find a means to carry around a similar journal. Perhaps an exact copy of what he has used himself. Regardless, I very much think it shall become a goal of mine. It is perhaps an audacious endeavor to undertake, but I can think of few endeavors more noble and worthy of the effort.

The question that presents itself to me is, should I choose the same thirteen virtues? Should I add more? Focus on fewer, but to a greater extent? Perhaps trade in some for others? How would I decided which are more or less worthy of attention? More or less relevant to my life and shortcomings as a man?

This will probably become a project of mine. I fully expect more posts in the future about it. Maybe pictures of whatever form my journal takes as well. Comments or suggestions are more than welcome!