Burns Night!

Tonight I expect ‘fanatical Burnsians’ will be partying with haggis and neeps and several tots of whisky  -   No’ me (‘not me’ in English)  -  I loathe haggis and neeps (turnips in English), although the odd tot of malt is acceptable  -  actually hugely so.  We were overloaded with Rabbie Burns at school and I enjoyed his song ‘Ca’ the Yowes to the Knowes’. I had no idea what it meant  -  I thought it might mean ‘Call the cows from the fields’ but on googling it find it means ‘Drive the sheep to the hills’. Ah well, you can’t get it right all of the time! He did his bit to keep the Scots language alive  -  it hasn’t worked though.   Actually, the man we should be celebrating is John Murdoch (1747-1824) - read HERE!
who was hired by Robert Burns’ father and neighbours to teach their children ( I bet it was only the boys)  to read and write using English grammar.   Without John Murdoch Burns may never have become the poet he was.
Strangely enough one of my favourite poets (Maya Angelou) made a film about her connection with Burns.  She got it wrong about his poor beginnings though  -  anyone who could afford a private tutor could hardly be classed as poor!  He’d have loved this poem of hers here she reads it!  -  but I think he would’ve interpreted it according to his own view of women.