Searching for Scotland
Braveheart was released in 1995, around the same time my mother became obsessed with our family’s genealogy. Mel Gibson’s film featured a romanticized version of William Wallace’s story, coupled with an engaging soundtrack of original music by James Horner. Though grossly historically inaccurate, the movie and my family’s Scottish origins instilled in me a desire to go to Scotland.
Twenty-three years later I found myself traveling to Inverness with my husband and my daughter. My father-in-law, brother-in-law, and sister-in-law met us there. We saw (and touched) Loch Ness; we visited the Highlands. We stood on Hadrian’s Wall (illegally). We saw the oldest of the Crown Jewels in Edinburgh Castle. It was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
France, 1994
I learned how to buy a ticket and negotiate a train ride. I bought a ticket to see “La Haine “ (the hate) at a local cinema, and I watched the movie with real interest and appreciation, and I learned how people stood up for themselves in the face of ignorance and racism.
I walked with my host family and their cows down the trails on the outskirts of town. I listened to local classical music performances at some of the beautiful old buildings in the town’s center.
I learned how to make authentic French dinners using fresh, local ingredients that I would pick up after school let out each day. It wasn’t a “cushy” stay by any means, but it was inspirational and transformative.