Sacramento Scottish Highlands Games and Festival – a photo essay of history

This wasn’t my first Scottish Highlands Games and Festival.  However, this one was different.

I met up with old friends, Scottish Highlands Games professional athletes, and made new ones as well.  And this time, you get a chance to see how big these men really are.

Bagpipes, Scottish music, kilts, and food.  Yep, they were all here.  However, I didn’t just hear the music.  I listened to it.  I saw the passion of the people.  I tasted their food.  And I wore a Scottish kilt.

The Sacramento Scottish Highlands Games and Festival, one of the oldest Scottish Highlands festivals in the country, opened my eyes to the Scottish Highlands culture.  This festival made such an impact on me I promised this wouldn’t be last Scottish festival.

So I came back this year with a new perspective.  And I left with a new appreciation and love of Scottish culture, history, and people.

This year, I had fun, attended the parades, tried some different food, and got into the spirit a little more.  I even threw some haggis around in the haggis throwing contest (and yes, I ate some too).

However, the 136th Sacramento Scottish Highlands Games and Festival allowed me to study Scottish history.  I dug deeper and met the people, took the time to understand the history and culture, and even explored my own heritage and history.

As we look back at the photos from this year’s Scottish Games and Festival, many will look similar to last year.  Some photos will show you a little more than last year.

Yet I look at these photos and see these people, this culture, and the country of Scotland much differently now.

136th Sacramento Scottish Highlands Games and Festival photos

I see a bagpiper and I don’t see an interesting Scottish photo op.  I see a World War II hero.

I see a true Scot in a kilt and I am humbled by his dignity, honor, and pride in who he is.

I see a number of clans and don’t see a unique, fun cultural heritage with tough men in skirts.  I see hundreds of years of history as I picture an ancestor working hard, fighting wars, and looking to survive in the Scottish Highlands.

These are the lesson I learned.  These are the stories I will tell.  Maybe the photos you see are similar to the 135th Sacramento Scottish Highlands Games and Festival photos from last year.

However, I see more than a photo.  I see more than a snapshot of Scottish culture.  I see living history being played out right in front of me.  And I can’t look at a kilt, bagpipe, or a Scottish clan the same way ever again.

Scottish Highlands Games professional athlete Chad Gustin Jeremy Branham

Thanks for the Callie Club of Sacramento for this annual Scottish Highlands Games and Festival.  I appreciate them giving me a chance to be a part of it.

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