Table of Contents

I wear a ring with the tools of my trade,
You can only get them if you make the grade.
You will be reborn at the age of three,
The hoodwink will be removed and then you will see.
You will learn about the Greater and the Lesser Lights.
You will learn how to tell your brother by day or by night.
You will learn about the Square, the Level and the Plumb.
You will learn about the Northeast (corner of the room).
You will be often tried, but never denied.
You will be ready and willing to be tried again.

When this is done for all to see
You will be passed to the next Degree.
Once again you will be put in the dark.
You will be made to travel; you must remember the mark.
You will learn the Five Orders and what they stand for.
You will learn the Liberal Arts and much, much more.
The letter G will become more clear,
You will know Geometry, Gnosis. You will have no fear.

The stone you carry has been made real smooth,
Now you are ready for the last move.
To become a Master is quite an ordeal
You must relish it with favor and with zeal.
You will be betrayed by those you trust.
You will be alone, away from us.
Do not give them the Word that they seek!
You must be strong; you must not be weak.
Cold. Dark. Dead you lie,
Grave marked by Acacia, pointing to the sky.
From the dead to the living you must rise;
3, 5, 7; how many tries?
Once again you are risen and stand on the Square,
There is one more thing that you must declare.
From the Points so Perfect to the points of Five,
You will receive the Word that made you alive.
So mote it be.
The Master —
Is ME!

I knocked on the door and I was let in.
The Brothers inside, they are my friends.
They said I was not old enough to wear the square.
But not to worry, they would get me there.
There is so much that I will learn,
As I watch the flames of the Great Lights burn.
There are supports, tenets and virtues too.
There is Hope, Faith, Charity; what am I to do?
I have a mallet, chisel and a cable-tow.
What do I do with them? Do you know?
Somebody said something about the Sun and the Moon;
They said we start work somewhere around noon.
There is somewhere around here to get paid,
But first, the stone must be laid.
(But that's another story.)
There is somewhere here that we get our wages,
But first we have to learn to use our gauges.
Then there is Jacob and his Ladder;
Who was going up and down it? Does it matter?
Liberty, Equality, Fraternity; sounds to me
Maybe I'm ready for the next degree.

Do you know the five orders of architecture and what they stand for?
Do you know three are Greek and two are Roman?
Do you know any more?
Do you know that three stand for the Square, Level and Plumb?
Do you know which two stand in your room?
Do you know what the G's mean?
DO you know when Gnosis came on the scene?
Do you know the sciences and liberal arts?
Can you dissect them - take them apart?
Pass these words to our friend
Jack Shine
And he will let you in.

I am one of the "Boaz of the 'hood."
I want to know if you would help me, if you would?
I am alone, I am the son of a widow.
Would you help me I want to know?
I hear your cable-tow is long,
But to help me you've got to be strong.
If I seek shall I find,
Or will I be just - left behind?
If I knock, will I be heard?
Or is your talk just vain words?
If I ask, will you give?
Or shall I find somewhere else to live?
I was mugged by three guys,
It really bought tears to my eyes.
How did you feel when you heard
That I was mugged for my word?
I did not give it, I want you to know;
That's why I'm pulling on your cable-tow.

Don't cover me up, don't take my light,
I can tell who you are by day or by night.
I can tell by your walk;
I can tell by your talk;
I can tell by how you stand;
Or by the shake of your hand.
If you are lost, I know where you can be found;
All I have to do is take a look around.
I know who you are if you tell me your age,
Then I know what conversation we can engage.
I can tell if there is a spider on your coat,
That you are the man who had to ride the goat.
If you can't read and you can't write but you can spell,
Then I know you very well.
But there is something I want you to know:
I am the son of a widow.
If you know from whence I hail,
Then you are a man who is truly veiled.

What manner of man sat at Solomon's side
When the Temple's doors were opened wide?
Solomon had a feast when the Temple was done.
All the Masters were invited and he barred none.
There was this one who forced his way in,
He said he belonged with these Masters, yes, with these men.
Solomon called each Master by name
And asked. "Do you know this man or what he proclaims?"
The Sculptor said, "He is not one of us who uses the hammer and chisel;
We pray, my Lord, for his dismissal."
The Master who had inlaid gold in the ceiling
Said, "He is not one of us, why is he kneeling?"
None of the Masters knew this man
None had seen him in their land
Then the man began to speak,
"Who made the tools that lie beneath your feet?"
Everyone said the son of the forger, the blacksmith.
Their answer was the same,
He was the man they called Tubal Cain.

Tu - means THE
Bal - means TOOL
Cain - means SHARPENER or MAKER

Masonry is universal, it has often been said,
And that Brotherly love, it's trowel doth spread.
That Masonry reaches across the sea,
And touches Brothers like you and me,
Whose acquaintance might have never met,
Had it not been for this 'secret sect.'
Masonry has a thing that we all have in common,
A thing that we all know,
And that's the length of our cable-tow,
As stretched out by Brother Leighton
To give us joy and to brighten
Our joy of Masonry
As laid down for all to see.
Worry not who sows the seed,
For yours is a noble deed.

The Entered Apprentice sometimes travels.
He uses a gauge, and a gavel.
He hammers away until the stone is the right size,
Then he gives it to the Companion for his eyes.
The Companion takes the stone and puts it in place.
He uses the square, level and the plumb to make it even faced.
Then comes the Master who's been there all the while,
He takes the cement and spreads it with his trowel.

The point within the circle,
The boundry line for man.

Stay within it's limits
And do the best you can.

The point is the man,
The circle his world within.

That he may do the best he can,
Not to yield to a world of sin.

Brother Richard A. Gould, Jr.

is a rare find for those of us who enjoy the pages of the Masonic Poets Society. Brother Gould has already had a book of poetry published and the second book will soon be available. He is a member of Bethel Lodge No. 7 in Suffolk, Virginia and a Sublime Prince of the Royal Secret and is a Scottish Rite Brother. He has two books that would be of interest to us all. The first is called In The Mind's Eye and is currently out of print. The second is called In The Mind's Eye Too and is currently [2001] at the publisher. He has agreed to share his Masonic Works with us and now has his own "corner" on the MPS.
gsl.

Bibliography (as of 2007)

In The Mind's Eye, 1996, Watermark Press,
ISBN 1575531852
In The Mind's Eye Too, 2001, Watermark Press,
ISBN 0795100027