There’s no debating over the fact that everyone in Scotland – and the rest of the UK – where at the edge of their seats awaiting the results of the Independence Referendum. I personally, was not one of those who (willingly!) stayed up the entire night to watch as the results from every county were tallied together. This was a result, which would not only effect this generation, but one that would also define the livelihood of generations to come.
As a YES voter, I was initially shocked and angered at the result. Although at the back of my mind I admit that I had a nagging feeling – shown by my lack of sleep and haggard look – that the result would be ‘no’. Well guys, let’s just say I was not a pretty sight in the morning! This is of course my own conclusion judging by the “Godzilla response” I got from many students who actively avoided my grumpy demeanor and me!
In fact, most of my Friday morning consisted of pacing my room while getting worked up as I went through one of the famous “Fyfe soap-boxes”. Of which, my dad and I like to get really stuck into. I could probably say that from a family oriented viewpoint, we actually grew closer as time got nearer to September 18th. But all families are different. We’ve all heard stories of couples splitting up and families being torn apart because of different views. I hear these stories and wonder if the families are ever going to kiss and make up. The Scottish Independence Referendum was the chance for a brighter and better future for our nation. Although I do love the YES campaign’s promises and was feeling rotten all weekend, I feel that the families should get over their wee tiffs and come together to try and create a better future for everyone.
However, there are many Scots that will take advantage of any opportunity to cause a stir in the settled peace. Obviously an example of this was trouble in George Square (Glasgow) because of the Protestant Orange Order who encouraged perhaps more radical pro- unionists to join in on the riot. But to me surely if the NO vote won by a majority then they’d be content with the result. It may not be fair to fully blame the radical Unionists but from what I understand of the majority of NO voters they can’t see any reason to cause such a stir. It may be fair to argue that this was an unrelated violence and the tensions of the day gave angry people the perfect outlet. We all hope that those Friday night’s events won’t be repeated and that that was the end of the tension. We all know that we can’t go back to how everything was before the referendum so these first few months after the result must be crucial in setting an example for the future.
There were a lot of super fans for either side in the referendum that are passionate for what they believe in, like my dad. My dad was and still is a strong supporter of the YES campaign. He has a “Keep Calm and Vote Freedom” T-Shirt he wears with pride; he wears it everywhere! Which is actually super cringey. But although my dad is pro-independence, I mentioned the petition for a recount to him and he wasn’t interested. I asked him why and he responded with the simple phrase “the people have spoken”. I don’t know whether my dad was going through a philosophical moment but I do know that he has accepted the outcome of the referendum. I am getting to the point where I am in the same boat and I feel that everyone should go through this to reach the goal of progression and acceptance.