At the Opening of Parliament earlier this month our new Makar Liz Lochead’s poem ‘Open the Doors again’ saw her revisit, and reiterate much of ‘Open the Doors’ by Edwin Morgan, the poem she herself read at the Opening of Parliament in 1999. While it was a moving tribute to her predecessor, it was also a timely reminder of the message of what Scotland expected, and still expects, of her Parliament. Both poems are powerful and the advice they offer worth heeding.
Unfortunately, in the past Parliament has failed to heed those warnings. Voting down the Minimum Pricing Bill in one breath and the Supermarket Tax in another exposed the Unionist parties as ‘a nest of fearties’. But these poems, like all great poetry, prompt some introspection. This majority is a golden opportunity and if we fail to let the ‘light of the mind shine out’ of this session then the people will punish us and we will deserve it. There are plenty of reasons to be optimistic. I cannot be alone in thinking that this session of Parliament will be the reconvened institution’s coming of age. That ‘phalanx of forelock tuggers’ who merely managed the first two terms like a boat not to be rocked and hamstringed the ambitions of the third at every turn, are now firmly where they belong: in the minority. The news that Morgan had left £1m to the SNP came as a surprise. Surprise not that he believed in Independence and that the SNP are the party to deliver it, nor at his generosity, rather surprise that poetry can make you a millionaire. It is profoundly moving to see a man of such intelligence, wit and foresight gifting such a large portion of his estate to the party and the cause. It must also stick in the craw of all those who take an inordinate amount of pleasure in insinuating that because the SNP received a donation from Brian Souter that we are a xeno-, homo-, and anglo-phobic party, because, after all isn’t that the just the nature of Nationalism? Do they really think that Edwin Morgan would have donated £1,000,000 to that sort of Nationalist party? How do they square that circle? Any ideas please comment below.
There was some talk of erecting a statue of Morgan in Glasgow’s West End. That would certainly be a refreshing contrast to the horse fondling Imperialists and dour faced Slave Traders which pox our towns and cities. When it comes to statues we could learn a lot from Dublin. However, better than building just a statue let us work together to build a New Scotland of which Edwin Morgan would be proud. Then we can say, in a Latin harsh with Aramaicisms, “Si monumentum requiris, circumspice”. If you seek his monument, look around you.
