Scottish Poetry Selection
- Langsyne, When Life was Bonnie

Alexander Anderson usually wrote under the pseudonym of "Surfaceman" and indeed worked as a surfaceman on the railway, laying and repairing the tracks. Many of his other poems are fond reminisces of children, written with a twinkle in the eye - Cuddle Doon, for example. But in this poem, Anderson seems to be saying that when life is going well - everything seems to go well. But when life is difficult, everything seems to go wrong.


Langsyne, When Life was Bonnie

Langsyne, when life was bonnie,
   An' a' the skies were blue,
When ilka thocht took blossom,
   An' hung its heid wi' dew,
When winter wasna' winter,
   Though snaws cam' happin doon,
Langsyne, when life was bonnie,
   Spring gaed a twalmonth roun.

Langsyne, when life was bonnie,
   An' a' the days were lang;
When through them ran the music
   That comes to us in sang,
We never wearied liltin'
   The auld love-laden tune;
Langsyne when life was bonnie,
   Love gaed a twalmonth roun'.

Langsyne, when life was bonnie
   An' a' the warl was fair,
The leaves were green wi' simmer,
   For autumn wasna there.
But listen hoo they rustle,
   Wi' an eerie, weary soun',
For noo, alas, 'tis winter
   That gangs a twalmonth roun'.

Meaning of unusual words:
Langsyne = long ago
ilka thocht = everyone thought
happin doon = covering down
gaed a twalmonth roun = went a twelve month round
liltin' = singing sweetly
warl = world
simmer = summer

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