I did not wear my kilt today

[Andrewson]

Many thanks for the warm welcome from all parts of the world. And for the supportive comments. That was really great!

I too sometimes wonder whether the idea that you have to wear a kilt to dance might put some men off trying, but since all the men that have taken up the activity here in France quit soon beg borrow or buy a kilt, I now think perhaps the opposite is true ; SCD is a good excuse to wear a kilt -- for those that would not dare to otherwise.

I go along with some of this but the fact is that when I first tried Scottish Country Dancing, way back in the late fifties, early sixties, I was quite determined that I was not going to wear a kilt.

I had just left my native Scotland to live in England and I was the kind of Scot -and there are many of these – that thought the whole kilts, tartan, hielan' teuchter bit was strictly for the shortbread tin lid. Scotland was a forward looking modern nation that didn't need all that kitsch. Though the dancing turned out to be fun, I never had any desire to kilt-up to do it and thought the Englishmen who did were faintly ridiculous. I should also add that I had resisted strong pressure from my mother for me to wear a kilt as a boy. Sure there were boys in my class at school who wore the kilt every day but I wasn't one of those. To be honest I did not have the chutzpah to wear a kilt in the tough mining village in which I grew up.

After a break of twenty years while our family grew up my wife and I again took up Scottish Country Dancing. Now things were very different. I'd like to say I was older and wiser, but I think I was just a bit less sensitive to what others might think. This time it was an invitation to be part of a public dance demonstration that spurred me on to buy my first kilt. This coincided with my joining the Forsyth Clan, my mother's family clan, and coming more to terms with Scottish traditions and history which gave me a more balanced view of habits and customs. Or maybe it was just the usual ex-pat nationalism coming to the fore?

Anyhow I soon discovered the comfort and joy of dancing in a kilt and for the last twenty years have found more and more occasions on which to wear one.

So I do go along with Martin that once you've crossed the barrier and given it a try, then SCD is a very good excuse to wear a kilt for those who would not dare otherwise. In a sense it is like wearing your kilt to Highland Games etc. but with the bonus that the opportunities are far more frequent. But, as I hope I've illustrated from my own history, there is a real barrier there to be overcome. And that is why when recruiting new dancers I make sure the men know that they definitely don't have to wear a kilt.

And I am not apologising for that