Saturday, February 14, 2009

A Valentine

John Anderson, My Jo
Robert Burns, 1789

John Anderson, my jo, John,
When we were first acquaint,
Your locks were like the raven,
Your bonnie brow was brent;
But now your brow is beld, John,
Your locks are like the snaw;
But blessings on your frosty pow,
John Anderson, my jo.

John Anderson, my jo, John,
We clamb the hill thegither,
And mony a canty day, John,
We've had wi' ane anither;
Now we maun totter down, John,
But hand in hand we'll go.
And we'll sleep thegither at the foot,
John Anderson, my jo.
I enjoy reading Robert Burns from time to time, and this is one of the poems that has a whole new meaning as I get older. Did I mention that in four days my wife will have one of those "milestone" birthdays? She and I "clamb the hill thegither" for close to 28 years already, but we're not quite ready to "totter down". And we still enjoy "mony a canty day".

There are at least two versions of John Anderson, My Jo, a longer version (not written by Burns) from about 1744 and this shorter (and more suitable for a family blog) version from 1789. The 1789 version was written by Robert Burns. You can see both versions by following the link in the previous sentence.

Anyway, happy Valentine's Day, Susan!

And Happy Valentine's Day to all of you who love and are loved.

No comments: