C. Fred Kleinknecht, 33°
Sovereign Grand Commander

We can tell a lot about ourselves by what we consider indispensable and important enough to preserve.

If any month can be called golden, it is surely October. The month's russet leaves and festive pumpkins turn my mind to golden memories and to our own Book of Gold in the House of the Temple. In it, Brethren inscribe their names when they receive the Thirty-third Degree, Inspector General Honorary, at the traditional Biennial Session conferral of the Degree in Washington, D.C.

Similarly, booklets with gold covers are sent upon request to the appropriate Orient's Active Member or Deputy for use at the local 33° conferral ceremony. On its sheets or equivalent sheets generated by the Orient, Brethren who are honored with this Degree sign their names, and these sheets are then returned to the Supreme Council where they are entered into the archives as a permanent record of the member having received this high honor.

Also, while the tradition has almost disappeared, there was a time when Scottish Rite Masons were encouraged to keep a Gold Book of their own. In it, each Brother was to write those things, encountered in his general reading or thinking, which seemed to him to be particularly significant, profound, or true.

It was a good practice, and one I wish could be revived-although now I suppose it would more likely be an electronic file in a computer's memory, rather than a notebook with gilded binding. His personal Gold Book was valuable to the Scottish Rite Mason because it became a history of his personal growth. We can tell a lot about ourselves by what we consider indispensable and important enough to preserve by writing it down.

As Pike tells us in the Degrees, charity is indispensable as are compassion, toleration, integrity, and honor. We are not Masons without these qualities. Often in times past, a Brother's personal Gold Book recorded the moments in his life that tested and strengthened these ideals. A father would bequeath his Gold Book to his son or special Masonic Brother. Writing in the book became a tradition from one Masonic generation to another.

Even today, each Mason still "writes" in his own Gold Book by his daily living. He adds pages to it when he helps a Brother, acts with integrity, or supports a worthy cause. The Masonic life of each of us is such a Gold Book. As we review its pages, we are reminded of the triumphs and the losses, the pains and the joys which have made up our lives. If we have been true to ourselves and to Freemasonry, we can close each chapter with a sense of having done well.

As we each move on to face new challenges and fulfill new dreams, as we open a new chapter in our personal Gold Book, may the teachings of our great Fraternity guide and strengthen us anew, and may each of us keep within our hearts the glow of golden October.