Ancestors and Other Fantasies

Tapestry, The Cloisters Museum

Scotland first rose in my imagination as I sat in morning sing at the School in Rose Valley belting out the lyrics to Scotland the Brave: High in the misty highlands/Out by the purple islands/Brave are the hearts that beat beneath Scottish skies...

The Skye Boat Song wooed me as well, and when my dad heard me humming it, he wove tales of our Scottish Ancestry. Our name, Randall, came from Scotland. Robert Randall was a Highland Scott. But who was he? Where in Scotland was he born? What small moments occupied the day of an Officer in the Royal Navy in the mid 1700s? Did he have the Randall nose? Could he raise one eyebrow? (Did he ever think to try?)

I developed a fascination for the Middle Ages. I devoured any Arthurian legends that came my way. I longed to see a castle.

In graduate school I discovered that the same event, the coming together of Pangaea, created the Appalachian Mountains along whose spine I have lived most of my life, and the backbone of the UK.

And then, last week, I learned that the National Animal of Scotland is the Unicorn. A symbol of purity and vitality, innocence and healing, the unicorn now stands opposite the lion in the Royal Coat of Arms in the UK, a symbol of unity and peace.

And so, into the misty Highlands and out to the purple islands we go. We go to walk where our ancestors walked; we go in search of legends, castles and unicorns; we go to walk the mountains of home. So you take the low road, and I'll take the high road...