I’m the type of person who looks for connections in life. From small moments of serendipity to unlikely strokes of fate, I look for events, words, places, and people to which I feel connected.
We are getting ready to go to Scotland in October. For some reason, this trip has caused some trepidation in my usual adventurous spirit. Therefore, I am going through our itinerary day by day to be sure I have some type of plan. We will not have a car, but will be traveling to four cities, staying two to three nights in each. I’ll be sure to share more after we go.
But you can imagine my surprise when I looked up who was hosting Poetry Friday this week and found that it was Margaret, who had just returned from Scotland! I cannot wait to hear of her adventures!
Just before I looked at Margaret’s page, I spent time looking for Scottish poets and was introduced to Sorley MacLean, a 20th-century Gaelic poet who has a small but powerful body of work featuring romance, love, Scottish pride, and war (he fought in WWII).
There are many pages on the internet on which you can read his work. I will share just a few.
Background on MacLean’s life can be read on this BBC link:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/profiles/5btqSDpT800TGH1KfnmPpnZ/sorley-maclean
A website contains his work as well as information about his life:
http://www.sorleymaclean.org/english/poetry.htm
This YouTube presentation of one of his poems, entitled The Choice:
You can read his poem Hallig here, which is about a town on the Isle of Raasay where he was born and the resultant Clearances (forced evictions).
I came upon MacLean because I was searching for something to do for our second full day on the Isle of Skye. I found a trip to the Isle of Rassay to be a viable choice. Once I moved to looking at Scottish poets and saw MacLean was from the Isle of Rassay, I knew I had found my connection!
All of this new information, plus finding out that Margaret had just returned from Scotland, has made me excited for our trip and removed some of my trepidation! Connections count!
Other events this week are that I published the website I was working on for my husband’s segmented wooden bowls that he makes. It is live! I hope you check it out.
jimlabuzzettaswoodstudio.com
I’ve returned to some sewing of my market bags and will be posting photos of those as well as some other art projects I’ve got going. Soon, I’ll have blank National Park note cards for sale that I’ve created from my photography. I have to spend some time deciding how to organize a space on this blog for them. Here are a couple of examples:
Thank you for hosting Margaret! Please visit Margaret’s blog, Reflections on the Tech, to read more poetry goodness!
The Apples in My Orchard 
Hooray for travel to Scotland! And, extra hoorays for your growing excitement. What a great place to gather inspiration. I’m sure all your planning will pay off. The youtube video is beautiful! What a pretty way to enjoy poetry. Thanks for sharing that. Bon Voyage! I look forward to the photos and words you capture on your trip.
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Sounds like you are all set. I was worried up to the minute that something would go wrong, but it all went smoothly. I wish I had had one more day in each of the places we visited. We chose to use a tour company. We started in Glasgow, then Inverness, Aberdeen, and Edinburgh. Thanks for introducing me to the poet. I will go back and read his poetry. Take lots of photos and eat your fill of shortbread.
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I love Julie Fowlis! Thanks for sharing a video of her singing. I’ve been studying Gaidhlig for a while now (inspired by Jone) so I recognized some of the words. Hope you have a delightful time! Congrats on getting your husband’s website finished!
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Carol, I too have visited Scotland and spent time in the highlands. Your trip has developed a clearer direction as a result of your curious delving into the poet’s of Scotland. A little side fact for you to ponder- Edinburgh has the world’s largest monument to a writer. I also stumbled across Robert Louis Stevenson’s house by accident- a bit of Scottish serendipity. May your travels fill your heart and mind with stories to savour. I shall seek out Sorley MacLean.
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So much talent in your family, Carol! Your husband’s bowls and your photography are all so beautiful. Thanks for the poetry links and have a wonderful trip!
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My goodness, so much goodness–Jim’s bowls are stunning and your photos, too. I bet you can guess which product a poet can afford! You’ll enjoy Scotland, I’m sure. Onward!
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Scotland is the place this week! That was so neat to hear the poem sung. Thanks for sharing and have a great trip!
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Scotland sounds wonderful! I hope to visit someday since Scottish ancestors. : ) Thank you for introducing us to some new-to-me poets. Have a wonderful trip!
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Scotland sounds wonderful! I hope to visit someday since Scottish ancestors. : ) Thank you for introducing us to some new-to-me poets. Have a wonderful trip!
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Serendipity indeed! 😀
My grandfather was born in Scotland and I’ve always longed to go. I hope we’ll make it there one of these days. I’m so happy for you!
The website you created for your husband’s beautiful work is great!
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