|
| January
- Robbie Burns |
Brush
up on your Scottish accent and lighten up a cold and
dreary winter month. On January 25, along with Scots
all over the world, celebrate the birth of Robbie Burns,
nee 246 years ago. The guests will arrive in traditional
kilt, wary of friends who have been deceived into thinking
that nothing is worn underneath. The chairman will greet
everyone at the door. When all have arrived, he invites
them to the table and with a few short sentences, using
his best Scottish accent, welcomes them. 
The traditional Selkirk grace is recited before dinner
is served. Oh, and don’t forget the whisky. |
The
Selkirk Grace
Some hae meat and canna eat
And some wad eat that want it
But we hae meat and we can eat
And sae the Lord be thankit |
The
meal begins with the soup, usually Scotch Broth or cock-a-leekie.
Then the company rises as the chef, accompanied by a
bagpiper, brings the haggis to the table. A CD will
do if you do not have a piper in your midst.
The traditional Ode To A Haggis is now recited and everyone
stands to toast the haggis as it is cut open. Webster
defines it as “a pudding, popular especially in
Scotland, made of the heart, liver and lungs of a sheep
or a calf minced with suet, onions, oatmeal and seasonings
and boiled in the stomach of the animal”. Here
I wish to dispel the myth that the haggis does live
with the loch ness monster although I am told the original
odor could lead one to conclude that it does come from
the depths of the sea.
Fortunately today you can buy the haggis at your local
grocery store that makes it especially for the occasion
of Mr. Burns’s birthday. You may find the taste
quite similar to pork sausage. All you have to do is
the boiling. Oh, and don’t forget the whiskey.
After the dinner, everyone sings songs and recite poems.
There are many good internet sites to search for the
classic poems of Robert Burns. I found the Red Red Rose
on geocities.com. |
RED
RED ROSE 1794
O my Luve's like a red, red rose,
That's newly sprung in June:
O my Luve's like the melodie,
That's sweetly play'd in tune.
As fair art thou, my bonie lass,
So deep in luve am I;
And I will luve thee still, my dear,
Till a' the seas gang dry.
Till a' the seas gang dry, my dear,
And the rocks melt wi' the sun;
And I will luve thee still, my dear,
While the sands o' life shall run.
And fare-thee-weel, my only Luve!
And fare-thee-weel, a while!
And I will come again, my Luve,
Tho' 'twere ten thousand mile! |
The
chairman then gives the traditional toast to the Lassies.
“Gentleman please stand and raise your glasses.
Here is to our fair maidens, our girlfriends, wives,
aunts, mothers(and mother-in-laws !) Gentlemen here's
to the lassies”. It is appropriate at this moment
for more men to toast the lassies – in fact all
the men could toast the lassies and, to really get going,
the lassies respond to the toast to the lassies. Oh,
and don’t forget the whisky.
The evening ends with a rendition of Auld Lang Syne.
Oh, and don’t forget the whiskey. |
|
