Oh Yes - Robert Burns

I love this poem/song written by Robert Burns in 1791 - at a time when he lived in the same town as my husband's 6 X Great-Grandparents. It refers back almost a hundred years previously to the Act of Union (1707) when the members of the Parliament of Scotland effectively voted themselves out of existence, bought, as is suggested by the poem  with "English gold". The Scottish people of the time, were most unhappy with this decision, and there were protests petitions and riots - copies of the treaty were torn up in public, but to no avail. Burns' poem encapsulates the feeling in the country about this, and quite likely his own too. 

Now - in September, we in Scotland have a chance to vote on whether we want to leave this Union and become an independent country. I will be voting Yes, as I really believe that having our own government, elected by the people of Scotland, will benefit everyone living here. We have the chance now to build a fairer and more forward looking society - free from nuclear weapons, and from the imposition of policies, which damage our society and that we have not voted for. It is so exciting and I hope that on September 18th, we will all take a deep breath - Vote Yes - and jump in to the opportunities this change will bring.

The singer here is Pat Kane. He has such a wonderful voice and I love this version of what is an incredibly hard tune to get right. He does.

Wishing you a very happy Burns Night.