The Anselm Society Presents

Scottish Burns Night!

Saturday, February 20, 2021

Join the Anselm Society for its first-ever Burns Night celebration!

We'll gather ‘round a virtual haggis for music and festivities on Facebook Live Saturday, February 20, 2021, at 7 pm MST. If you're unable to visit Facebook at that time, the entire Burns Night event video will also be viewable on YouTube.com.

What is all this about?

Every year, Scotland warms up its dark, wintry nights by celebrating its national poet, Robert Burns, on or around his birthday on January 25. (The beloved bard turned 262 last month!)

Burns Night traditionally includes a Burns supper of haggis, music, toasts, speeches, and readings (see info below).

The Anselm Society has put together a virtual celebration so that we can all let our inner Scottishness free to lift our own own spirits in these challenging times to toast beauty, creativity, friendship, and good food! Much of the live-taped evening is set at Glen Eyrie -- Colorado Springs’s own authentic Scottish castle!

A Night of Hosted Celebration

Scottish-born Fiona McDonald Brubaker and her husband, Marcus, will serve as the evening's hosts, opening with a hearty Scottish welcome. They'll provide a short explanation of Burns Night and a wee bit o’ reminiscing of past celebrations -- back when folks could gather in person.

Here’s a Sample of the evening’s offerings

• Enjoy the Loch Lomond Trio -- Fiona (viola) plus Terri Moon (violin) and Megan Prahl (harp) -- perform beautiful traditional Scottish music.

• Christina Brown will help us take a moment to “Toast to Absent Friends.”

• Observe the ceremonial entry and "Address to the Haggis."

• Listen as Brian Brown explains to his children (and us!) the true origins of the haggis. 

• Enjoy the wit and wisdom of our favorite Anselm Podcast hosts Matt Mellema and Mandy Houk as they “Address the Lassies” and respond in turn on behalf of the Lassies.

• Learn why Robert Burns is still relevant today when Evangeline Denmark gives “The Immortal Memory” address.

• Be entertained by an interpretation of “Up in the Morning Early” from one of our younger Anselm members.

• Be moved to deeper thoughts with Fiona’s recitation of “A Man’s A Man for A’ That.”

We will close the evening in the traditional way by all singing Burns’s famous “Auld Lang Syne” – one of the world’s most famous songs, and especially poignant at a moment when separation is being endured on a global scale!

You don’t have to be Scottish to love Rabbie Burns or a Burns Night! You just have to love good music and good literature and good friendship!

LEARN FROM BURNS, LADDIES: HOW TO WOO YOUR LASSIE WITH A SCOTTISH POEM ON VALENTINE’S DAY

Burns’s “A Red, Red Rose” is perfect for reciting on Valentine’s Day. (Or for singing, if you're brave. Watch this for inspiration. You will find his famous poem here, where our four handsome Anselm Society gents woo-ed their bonnie lasses as they gamely reel off Burns’s tongue-twisting phrases. Anything for love! Print it out, and go surprise your Luve!

Who was Robert Burns?

“Rabbie ” Burns was born on January 25, 1759, in a two-roomed cottage in Alloway, near Ayr, in Scotland. He became a prolific poet who wrote about everyday life using a Scottish vernacular that was already under threat from English in his lifetime.

Sadly, he died at the early age of 37, but he left behind a body of work that “recorded and celebrated aspects of farm life, regional experience, traditional culture, class culture and distinctions, and religious practice and belief in such a way as to transcend the particularities of his inspiration”, says the Poetry Foundation.

Burns Night started five years after his death, when a small group of friends gathered to remember him, and decided to repeat the memorable night every year.

<<Top photo: Alloway, near Ayr, Scotland, birthplace of Robert Burns, and the Brig'o Doon (bridge over the River Doon)! Taken by Fiona Brubaker.>>

Recipes for your
Burns Night Celebration

Bashed Neeps and Chappit Tatties

Mashed rutabagas and mashed potatoes: note that what is called a turnip in Scotland is actually a Swedish turnip, or “Swede” and is really a rutabaga in the US. If you don’t like the flavor of rutabaga, try cooking carrots with them and then mash them together for a sweeter flavor.

Scottish Oatcakes

A crisp, savoury oatcake; perfect with a little butter and cheese.

Cranachan

Cranachan is the classic Scottish dessert of Scotch-spiked whipped cream layered with raspberries and toasted oats and sweetened with honey. It's as easy as it is delicious.