Time To Find A New Direction

I had a rather odd conversation with my friend William J. Hussey the other night--of course all my conversations with Bill Hussey over the years have been somewhat odd.  That's why I talk to him.  There are few friends I've met during my travels in Freemasonry that entertain me more. 

Anyway, our conversation got me thinking about a few things.  Ever since I became a Master Mason back in 2005, I've been writing about Freemasons, and talking about the Craft.  I was so inspired in the very beginning, I had a lot to say about it--five books in six years is a pretty impressive amount of work.  I couldn't guess how many speeches and articles I've written on top of that.  And I also edit and write pieces for a joint newsletter for my lodge and another local lodge.  I've worked double shifts five or six nights a week for nearly seven years now.  And I've gotten a lot out of it.

But for some time, my enthusiasm has begun to ebb somewhat.  These late night shifts have taken a toll on me.  I finished my second novel over Labor Day, and since then I've been researching another book about Freemasonry, and I just can't seem to get it to work, and I'm really not that excited about it.  Don't get me wrong, it's a great idea, I'm just tired.  Looking back at my blog over the last several months (okay, it began to flag about a year ago), it's pretty obvious I haven't exactly been at the top of my form with it either and the hit counts demonstrate I'm beginning to lose the interest of my readers.  It's gotten harder and harder over time to find things I'm truly interested in writing about.  I've fallen into a deep rut, and it seems like I'm just doing the same things over and over again.  I need to find a new direction, and I've known that for awhile now.  I just wasn't sure what direction to take.

I figured it all out the other night after talking to Bill.  I've spent too much time over the years writing about Freemasonry from behind a desk, and not nearly enough time actually enjoying it like I did in the beginning.  That's what first inspired me, so why did I stop doing that? 

The answer is fairly simple--its time.  There's only so much of it.  It's that 24-inch gauge that's kicking my butt.  Researching and writing is enormously time consuming, and it doesn't leave much spare time to do the very thing I've so enjoyed writing about.  I made a choice. 

So I'm going to quit working on books, at least for a while, and spend a little more time with my brothers.  Let my batteries recharge for awhile while I get back to the basics.  Maybe during this little hiatus I'll run across something, like I did in the beginning, that grabs my attention and won't let go.  Something I find so fascinating to me that I'll have to write about it.  In the meantime, be assured that if I do run across anything interesting in my travels, I'll be sure and tell you about it on here.  I've got a few new adventures beginning--I'm sure I'll have a few thoughts here and there.

I'm nearly at the end of my last night shift for what could be some time.  It's going to be a hard habit to break, but I think it's time to turn out the light and go to bed for a change.  We'll see what tomorrow has to offer. 

It brings to mind one of my favorite quotes by one of my favorite Freemasons:

"Tomorrow is the most important thing in life.  Comes into us at midnight very clean.  It's perfect when it arrives and it puts itself in our hands.  It hopes we've learned something from yesterday."

~ John Wayne

~TEC