I never thought as a kid growing up in South Alabama that I would ever join the Masons. As a matter of fact, I didn’t even know what a Freemason was until later in life. My father was not a Mason and my Grandfathers weren’t Masons, to my knowledge. I first thought of the Freemasons in my early twenties while working my way up on oil drilling rigs in the Gulf of Mexico. I felt there was something missing in my life and God had greater plans for my life than working and wasting time doing nothing. I didn’t quite know what it was, but I had to find it. I was raised in an Assembly of God church, so I knew Jesus and felt it wasn’t religion that I needed. I had a great girlfriend, which is now my wife, and we were happy with life and were growing. I had begun college and my brain was soaking up everything I could get my hands on. I knew I was growing and didn’t know which direction to point. I would surf the internet aimlessly, as most do late at night, looking for God knows what. Then somehow I stumbled on a Freemasonry website and I thought, what are the Masons and what do they do. I had a friend that wore a ring that I recognized from the website and I continued to read more. Before long I knew enough to know that I wanted to give it a try. I liked the idea of meeting with a group of men from different backgrounds and having a sort of bond. Little did I know that there was much more to the Freemasons than meetings and bonds. I told my girlfriend that I had been reading about the Masons and wondered if she knew any. She said her Paw Paw was a Mason, though he didn’t attend Lodge much. So one day I went to talk to Paw Paw about the Freemasons and what they did. Now Paw Paw wasn’t your ordinary grandfather. He didn’t sit on the porch in the swing enjoying the day or spend his time relaxing in the flowerbeds. He would drive all over town talking to friends and working on his projects. Every morning, Paw Paw would start his day traveling from place to place drinking coffee and having fellowship with his friends. Then he would go to the banks to check on his money and stop by different business’ making deals. The man never slowed down, so it made me feel good for him to spend 2 hours with me one afternoon talking about the Freemasonry. My wife and I dated for ten years before we got married and from the time I first met Paw Paw, he called me Ricky. I don’t know how he got Ricky from Randy but after our talk, he then called me Randy. I told him I wanted to join the Lodge and he agreed to bring me up for before the Lodge. It was just a day or two later that he had me a petition to sign and I could tell he was proud to bring me up. After that Paw Paw and I had a unique friendship that I still can’t explain to this day. He had never been one to slow down enough to attend Lodge meetings, but Paw Paw would come to each meeting where I would present my work. He did show up late on one occasion, but we all knew he ran a little late most of the time. Paw Paw went on to meet The Great Architect of the Universe and I think of him regularly and still remember his smile, handshake, and hug after being raised to Master Mason.
While working from Entered Apprentice through to Master, I read every book I could find on Freemasonry, so I knew more than I probably should have early on. The more I read, the more I wanted to know. I read books saying that it is a cult, a conspiracy, a world domination organization and all sorts of garbage. I began to quickly discard the books of that sort and would read only complimentary literature. As I grew more, I realized that I must read the garbage as well as the nourishing to fully understand what the rest of the world was saying so not to veer down the wrong path. I let my conscious guide me and I have made many good decisions based on my conscious since.
A few years after making Master, I was ready for more light. I was raised in a Christian home, so I began looking for Brothers who were York Rite Masons. In most appending bodies of Freemasonry, you must pronounce a belief in a Supreme Being whether you are Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Sikh, but in the York Rite you must be a Christian. In my home town, we have no York Rite Club, so I searched east to a city called Dothan and found a large, involved, well organized group of York Rite Masons. I went York Rite and I hold this arm of the Craft very high as I have strong roots in Christianity. After reading more and researching more I decided to join the Scottish Rite. My town has a local club for Scottish Rite Masons from the Montgomery Valley, so I joined there, but did my work in Dothan with my York Rite Brothers. I am now 10 degree York Rite and 32 degree Scottish Rite. During all of this, I realized that the stories are not just for show, but are allegories and use symbolism to teach us and make us think, therefore we grow. The more I grew, the more my eyes seemed to open up and I wanted more. In April of 2008 I joined the Shriners, which is where the fulfilling part comes in. The Shriners are a group of Freemasons that are a little less serious about what the other Masonic bodies take seriously. In other words they have fun. They have clown brigades, motorcycle groups, pretend cops and firefighters, just to mention a few. It is the world largest philanthropy, but they have a purpose. The Shriners raise money to support and help heal children with numerous disabilities just to make it simple. They have 22 hospitals in North America and cater to these children and it’s all free. They will even transport the children and their parents and provide a place for the parents to stay while at the hospitals. Now to me that is the greatest charity in the world and there is much to be said about them.
God has blessed me with a wonderful wife and daughter, of which mean more to me than anything in the world. My wife, Jennifer, and I dated since high school until 2001 when we got married in our home town off the square. She is a wonderful girl and I couldn’t ask for more. She is down to earth, funny, and she keeps me on track when I begin to get sideways. I’ve always heard that “it takes a great woman to make a great man” and I believe it. I often wonder if I would be the same person if she wasn’t around. I really think she has had a lot to do with who I am today. We were blessed with our daughter, Sarah Katherine, in 2006 and it was like all the pieces came together. When she was born, my life was complete and I tell God every day how thankful I am. It is the greatest feeling when your child is born and you think, “Wow, the Lord entrusted me to teach and be responsible for this little person”, and wonder why he thought you were that deserving. I am very humble to the Lord for all that he has blessed me with and wonder why he thought I deserved it.
I’m here now building this website to share my life and to spread a little Light at the same time. This is my first website and it will constantly be under construction as I learn more about building websites and I gain more Light in Masonry. Just keep in mind while on your journey, that just as King Solomon built the Temple for the Lord, that you are building your own Temple. You must use just mortar and stones of truth if your Temple with stand strong.
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