The Lamb Skin

It is not ornamental, the cost is not great,
There are things far more useful yet truly I state,
That of all my possessions, there's none to compare
With the white leather apron that all Masons wear.

As a young lad I wondered just what it all meant
When Dad hustled round and so much time was spent
On shaving and dressing and looking just right
Until Mother would say, "It's the Masons tonight."

Then some nights she'd say "What makes you go
Away up there tonight in the sleet and the snow
You see the same things every month of the year."
And Dad would reply, "Yes I know it my dear."

For years I have seen the same things it is true,
And tho' they are old, still they seem new,
For the hands that I clasp, and the friends that I greet
Seem a little bit closer each time we meet

Years later I stood at that very same door,
With good men and true, who had entered before.
I kneeled at the altar, and there I was taught
That virtue and honor can never be bought.

The spotless white Lamb Skin all Masons revere
If worthily worn, grows more precious each year
That service to others brings blessings untold
That man may be poor, tho` surrounded by gold

I learned that true brotherhood flourishes there,
That enmities fade 'neath the compasses and square,
That wealth and position are all thrust aside,
As there on the level men meet and abide.

Honor the Lamb Skin, may it always remain
Forever unblemished and free from all stain
And when we are called by the Great Father's Love
May we all take our place in the Grand Lodge above

~~ Author Unknown ~~