Auld Lang Syne: Should Old Acquaintance Be Forgot and Never Brought Online?

Another New Years Eve, a moment of reflection, a confluence of hope and regrets, stirred by an abundance of libations and incoherent renditions of Auld Lang Syne while the Giant Disco Ball of Time Square leaps to its demise on the countdown of Old Man Clark.

In the first line of the old Scottish melody Auld Lang Syne (or Old Long Since) we are asked a rhetorical question, should old acquaintances be forgot and never brought to mind? Most revelers today, including myself, just sing right along the first line and chorus and then mumble through the rest of the song, while hugging and/or kissing the person next to them, taking sips of champagne, and making loud noises. But what of the old acquaintances that the song invites us to remember, forgotten over the years, and why put forth such a question to mark a transitional moment as the New Year celebration.

In the song the storyteller is reminiscing on youthful times of friendship and shared experiences.

We two have run about the slopes,

and picked the daisies fine;

But we’ve wandered many a weary foot,

since auld lang syne.

For auld lang syne, my dear,

for auld lang syne,

we'll take a cup of kindness yet,

for auld lang syne.

We two have paddled in the stream,

from morning sun till dine;

But seas between us broad have roared

since auld lang syne.

At first blush, there is a bittersweetness, a deepness bordering on melancholy that is evoked by considering lost connections of earlier days. But on further reflection, the storyteller is not inviting sadness of the lost joys of youth but rather is honoring its meaning and purpose, reaching out to reconnect with loved one's even across time and geographical separation.

And surely you’ll buy your pint cup!

and surely I’ll buy mine!

And we'll take a cup o’ kindness yet,

for auld lang syne.

And there’s a hand my trusty friend!

And give us a hand o’ thine!

And we’ll take a right good-will draught,

for auld lang syne.

A moment of recognition, a toast to honor our loved one's that distance or death cannot defeat. Imagining that they at that same moment in some far off place are joining us toasting with their own pint of drink. A surreal moment of depth, mutuality, and connection.

In an age of social networking and internet connectivity, we have better opportunities to bridge that momentary lapse of shared community. In the last two years, I have been able to check in with quite a few old friends here and there from my youth, with relative ease, if for no other reason than to know that they are alive and well.  And so to each of my friends and auld acquaintances, I raise a pint and drink to your continued successes.

Yet, on the same note, not all make it so far and I want to also recognize those friends and family that may sit around a more distant table. And express the joys of their presence in our thoughts and memories we hold dear. In particular I can't escape the invitation to remember those I actually did spend my youth "run(ning) about the slopes"--friends, running partners, teammates from my teen years.  A couple of years back I wrote a poem in honor and as a eulogy for a two of these friends, Bonnie and Doug, I had recently learned of their untimely passing--in the spirit of Auld Lang Syne it seems appropriate to dust this off now and say, you are gone but not forgotten, to you I raise a joyful pint as well:

Unfinished business on a road to yesteryear,

Friends I have known, unbeknownst, disappear

As shadows at midnight in anguish and fear,

Wander in a lost, distant past, memories unclear.

Uncertain spirits, a darkened curtain now shields

The truth, tomorrow’s sunrise forever concealed.

As shadows in moonlight, down darkened alley’s steal,

A friendship once forged in a thousand footsteps afield.

Anonymous epithets in tragic relief,

A foothold, unfettered, the final lap turned brief,

As shadows of past victories, fall in their tracks.

Another finish line is crossed, but on a different path

At the top of a hill, eternity reaches the dawn

Your spirit runs free to where it belongs.

As the shadows melt into the valley below

Our hearts run with you,

one last mile to go.

May this year be filled with the Love of Family and Friends.
Cheers and Happy New Year!