The Morning After

Robert the Bruce, erstwhile King of Scotland, announced
the result of the Scottish Independence Referendum to the douce citizens of Aberdeen early this morning ...

"The votes have been counted and verified and they are as follows ... Yes 44.7% (1,617,989) No 55.3%(2,001,926) and I hereby declare that Scotland remains part of the United Kingdom!"

Voting Yes or No yesterday did not define me or my thinking. I'm pretty certain that many voters didn't fit neatly into one camp or another. The closeness of the result gives the impression of a nation divided but I believe that the majority stand in the middle ground.

The losers will have a sense of grievance but let both them and the winners reflect on these most moving, thoughtful and wise words written by award winning Edinburgh Makar, Christine De Luca.

The Morning After

Scotland, 19th September

Let none wake despondent: one way
or another we have talked plainly,
tested ourselves, weighed up the sum
of our knowing, ta’en tent o scholars,
checked the balance sheet of risk and
fearlessness, of wisdom and of folly.

Was it about the powers we gain or how
we use them? We aim for more equality;
and for tomorrow to be more peaceful
than today; for fairness, opportunity,
the common weal; a hand stretched out
in ready hospitality.

It’s those unseen things that bind us,
not flag or battle-weary turf or tartan.
There are dragons to slay whatever happens:
poverty, false pride, snobbery, sectarian
schisms still hovering. But there’s
nothing broken that’s not repairable.

We’re a citizenry of bonnie fighters,
a gathered folk; a culture that imparts,
inspires, demands a rare devotion,
no back-tracking; that each should work
and play our several parts to bring about
the best in Scotland, an open heart.

Christine De Luca