Time for a cup of tea and some oatcakes

by chuckofish

While we’re drinking our tea, let’s fortify our souls with some beautiful pictures of Scotland, which son #2 recently visited

the highlands

and where I would transport myself instantly if such a thing were possible.

highlands3

Looking at these pictures brings to mind family history (of course) and also of one of my favorite books, Alistair MacLeod’s No Great Mischief, in which he reminds us that his story, like all our own,

is the story of lives which turned out differently than was intended.

highlands 2

And while that truth frequently involves pain and serious trials, it also is worth contemplating from a positive angle. If things always turned out as we imagined, think of what we all would have missed!

I’ll take the surprises — good and bad — thank you very much. How about you?