Sons of Somerled and Scottish Heritage

Anyone who knows me knows that besides the Mother Road my dream is to one day visit Scotland. I have made Ireland twice and have to say I am drawn to the UK. I love everything about it, from the driving on the wrong side to the laid back life. I am sharing one of my favorite songs with you tonight. I heard it for the first time on my first trip to Ireland. I was in Dublin in a music store and they were gearing up for Steve McDonald's arrival. I wish I could have stayed...but alas our bus was leaving shortly for Killarney. The song Sons of Somerled stuck in my brain. When I got back to the states I began researching Somerled, the song, the singer, Scotland. I discovered that "Somerled was a 12th century Scottish lord and war leader who helped defend the land from Viking invaders. His grandson founded the largest and most powerful of the Scottish clans, Clan Donald. When New Age musician Steve McDonald of New Zealand became aware of his Scottish ancestry he began to intensively research his heritage as a member of Clan Donald; he also decided to write a concept album dedicated to the history of the Clan. Sons of Somerled is the very satisfying result." I began researching my own heritage several years ago and after attending a kirkin' of the tartans in Montgomery....was hopelessly hooked on the Scottish mystique I was unraveling. My family was Scottish but left Scotland shortly after the Battle of Glencoe and went to Ireland where they stayed until the 1800's when they boarded a ship and sailed to America to escape the potato famine and survive. The draw of the history is spellbinding to me. One day I am going to stand on the cliffs in the heather and know I have arrived.