Mason Scroll - My Grandfather's Secret Society

Shortly after my grandfather died, I was handed this scroll. Until then, I'd never known it existed. When I unrolled it, I discovered for the first time that my grandfather had been a Freemason. An important one. A long time ago.

He never mentioned anything to me about his affiliation with the Masons, a somewhat secretive society that is generally thought to have descended from the Knights Templars. The Masons were an aspect of his life that I knew nothing about until after he was gone. And the scroll provides very little information--other than a date, lodge name, and a few signatures.

The scroll was presented to my grandfather in 1930. He was a very young man then. Along the way, something must have happened for him to have left the organization. Yet, he saved this ephemera. He saved it, and he kept it close throughout the years. So, I have this scroll. A mystery. It's somewhat ironic since my grandfather was not a secretive man; he was an honest, modest, and gentle man. And I miss him very much.

There might have been much to tell, but I sense, if I'd known to ask, he would have waved it off as nothing significant. But once it was...a long time ago.

Now, I have the scroll and I keep it close.