“What shall I do with my life? How much am I willing to give of myself, of my time, of my love?”—Eleanor Roosevelt.

Dear Brethren:

The “Twenty-Four Inch Gauge” is a symbol of the Entered Apprentice degree and, as Masons, we explain how is it a representation of the twenty-four hours of the day. We are told how this time should be divided but what is time? To the philosopher, time is an unknown quantity. Like space, it appears to be a conception of the mind, without objective existence. Modern mathematicians contend that time and space are but two faces of the same idea, like the two sides of a coin. While we can comprehend one without reference to the other, we cannot use one without using the other. Every material thing occupies space for a certain time; every material thing existing for a specified time, occupies space.

Time is the very substance of life; its golden minutes the only stones we have with which to build. Every accomplishment of man, be it temple of marble or temple of character, act of selfishness or selfless giving to others, building a nation or building a house, must be accomplished with time. Without time nothing is ever done, hence he who wastes either his time or another’s squanders that which he cannot replace; which comes form we know not whither, to go we known not whence; which, once gone, is gone forever.

About us are many varieties of men with as many ideas of how time should be spent. Every human being has the same number of minutes in an hour, of hours in a day, of days in a year. Some have little or nothing to show for their thirty, forty, fifty, sixty, or seventy years. Other have great accomplishments to exhibit as the product of their time.

Time—gift of the Great Architect! Time—man’s greatest mystery, bitterest enemy, truest friend! Its care, conservation, employment, is the secret of the twenty-four inch gauge—its waste and aimless spending is the sin against which this symbolic working tool unalterably aligns the Ancient Craft. As we think about our life and what we have done, can you say that you have used your “time “ wisely? Have you given of yourself? Have you made someone’s life better because of your efforts?

Let us all use our time wisely—for we only have a certain amount of time with which we can work. Make every minute count. Become a useful part of your family, community, country, and, or course, your lodge.

Fraternally,
John Lacki, Jr.
Worshipful Master