Never Forget

When I returned from taking CJ home and the hospital etc I found a present which CJ had left for me: a beautiful Burns Crystal whisky glass. I'm not one of the Country's connoisseurs of the hard stuff. However I am a lover of crystal and it can hold gin (of which, with tonic, I do occasionally partake) just as easily as it can hold whisky. The significance of the gift was not, however, in the item itself but in that which was inscribed thereon. My name and the words 'Ne Oublie" - Never Forget. Now there are so many ways of looking at those words in the context in which they appear in my hands. Never forget the visit: I certainly will not do that because we had a lovely time. Never forget my name: ah well I couldn't guarantee that so the glass will be there to remind me. Never forget our friendship: how could I? Or just plain never forget. And therein lies the problem...........

The glass on a lovely book - also a gift from CJ

Graham: Never Forget

Why is the name Graham linked with the words Ne Oublie? The words are the motto of the Scottish Clan Graham of which John Stewart wrote:

It is remarkable that the early Grahams were one and all exceedingly capable men. In an age when the reputation of many great public figures, alas, that of most of the Scottish nobility, were sullied by deeds of violence, and often deeds of blackest treachery, it is refreshing to find that the Grahams stand out as loyal and true to the causes they espoused. Their story is not one of rapid rise to power through royal favor, or even at the expense of their peers, but rather a gradual steady rise based on their undoubted ability and worthiness which seems to have endured from one generation to another.

I can claim no descendancy from the Clan Graham but it appears to be a Scottish Clan to which I would have been proud to have been part.