Sperandum est – ‘It is to be hoped’, the motto of Clan Wallace — seemed appropriate at this time. Photograph was taken at The Gathering , part of the last Homecoming celebrations in 2009.
It is to be hoped the festive season has been all you wished it to be, celebrated and enjoyed with family, friends, carols, presents, the odd slice of turkey, dollops of Christmas pud, slabs of fruit-rich, lavishly iced cake, and a few (we’re not counting) glasses of wine or something stronger.
Our Christmas was postponed this year — to Boxing Day. One of our sons was booked on a flight from the south-west of England the previous Monday. Cancelled due to stormy weather and rebooked for the following day. That flight too was cancelled. Eventually he arrived late afternoon on Boxing Day. The turkey was in the oven and all was prepared for us to enjoy our Christmas dinner and present opening together. Worth the wait.
Now as the old year closes a new one beckons. We can look back over twelve busy months and celebrate the good times, the pleasures, the joys. If there were downsides and disappointments, then we hope the year about to start will be kinder to us.
We’ll be bringing in 2014 with a glass of whatever we fancy and, in a change to tradition, a slice of Madeira Sugar Cane Syrup Cake.
2014 brings to Scotland some long-planned big events — the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow; the Ryder Cup (described as the greatest tournament in match play golf) at the Gleneagles Hotel in Perthshire; another Homecoming Year, inviting those with connections or an interest in Scotland to come and visit; the 700th anniversary of the Battle of Bannockburn, near Stirling (commemorated by the opening in 2014 of a new world-class visitor centre); and of course our Independence Referendum which will have people voting in polling booths the length and breadth of the country.
A toast to you all.
It’s set to be a momentous year nationally, but individually for us all, and my relatives, friends and acquaintances around the globe, my blog followers (with special mention to those lovely people who comment and like posts) my hopes are for 2014 to be a year of health, happiness, satisfaction, creativity and peace. And for lots more blogging.
Happy New Year everyone.
I am me. For more click image.
jingsandthings 
Happy New Year, Dorothy. Wishing you and your family all the best in 2014. Have just spent a week with my son and his fiancé. Two more days and then they’re off for Montreal and then back for one more day with Mom and Dad and then back to the Netherlands. It’ll be back to work before I know it. Sigh!
Yup, holidays fly past too quickly. It’s good to see family, though. Daughter has young children and is too far away to travel at this time of year, so it was lovely to have our sons who are minus girlfriends/partners again. Hope you had a wonderful time with your son and his girlfriend.
I’m glad your son made it through the bad weather to celebrate with you. I hope you have a new year filled with love and happiness!
Thank you. We were glad he made it too. Losing three days of his break made his stay all too short, though. Hope your 2014 is creative and satisfying.
That cake really looks good. It is so nice to have our adult children return home!!!
The cake was excellent, especially when washed down with a glass of dry Madeira. Christmas is a family time. Too far for daughter to travel at this time of year with a young family, so great to have our sons. Hope you had a fantastic time.
That cake sounds and looks delicious.
The cake was delicious. The photo was taken in Madeira but the cake we brought home and enjoyed last night was perhaps even better. Spicy (bit like a gingerbread, but more moist) with almonds and sultanas. It didn’t last beyond the start of the year.
Cheers to a happy New Year, Dorothy!
All the best to you, too.
Hope you´ll have a great creative year!
Hope the New Year brings you many reasons to celebrate!
Thank you. Hope it brings you lots of goodies too.
Sperandum Est. A fine motto, I was brought up on as “There’s I hope”. Creates a way of looking at the world that always makes you look for the next best thing to happen! I was brought up on it.
What is this life without hope? We hope for good weather, we hope for good outcomes, we hope for the best for our family and friends. Hope is an integral part of our thinking, of who we are and what we achieve. Lucky you to be brought up surrounded by that hope, encapsulated in a motto so there is no forgetting its power.