Day 2-25 -- A Day for a Scottish Poet

Today is Robbie Burns Day.  In homes and halls around me people are celebrating this amazing Scottish poet.  He wrote many poems and song lyrics.  These include one I learned in grade school -- Comin' through the Rye -- which is written about a river not the grain. It took me a few years as a child to understand this <smile>.  In high school I discovered My Love is a Red, Red Rose -- amazing metre for a poem and it was a song lyric as well. Burns wrote about love, life and war. He lived during the 18th century with much of the writing being completed around the 1780s.

For a man who died before reaching 40 years, he seems a prolific writer. While he wrote in Gaelic, he also wrote in English and a Scots dialect (of English). These are works that still  are heard over 200 years later. During a Burns Day dinner, bagpipes play Burns songs and his poem Address to the Haggis is recited over the haggis prior to service. Accompaniments generally include neeps and tatties -- or mashed turnips and mashed potatoes. All in all, a rather hearty meal. I've tried haggis and it can be quite like a sausage filling, though many people balk at the offal used to flavour the dish.  Several toasts to hosts and guests occur with single malt. I had never enjoyed Scotch, but was introduced to one that I do like. My first sip left me with the impression that I was drinking a campfire <grin>, but the smokiness made way for several other wonderful flavours. Of course, the type I enjoy tends to be a costlier choice. The two I have settled on are both from distilleries on the island of Islay -- my favourite, Laphroaig and in second place, Lagavulin. Both are peaty or smoky and quite strongly flavoured. It doesn't surprise me that these are the ones I prefer since I enjoy strongly flavoured foods and full-bodied wines. Subtlety isn't my favourite, I guess <smile>.

So -- in honour of Robbie Burns Day, I will share a song that almost everyone should find familiar. It is often sung at the end of the Burns dinner. I've chosen a version sung by a Scot. Enjoy!

Auld Lang Syne -- Rod Stewart