Inverness

The capital of the Highlands At the mouth of the River Ness In olden times 'twas a Stronghold of the Picts St. Columba himself journeyed here To convert the Pictish King Brude Denied entry by the king Columba knocked and the doors Mysteriously open'd! Macbeth, Shakespeare's tragic Scottish brute As Mormaer of Moray and Ross At a later date Held a castle within the city Then Malcolm III destroyed the last traces Of vanquish'd Macbeth Built his own castle Victoriously on the mount The castle that stands at Inverness today Was built in the 1830's A majestic impression of Red sandstone sovereignty With a statue of Flora MacDonald To grace its entrance way Perched overlooking the city The river flowing serenely Below A footbridge takes you across From side to picturesque side One of the most livable cities in Scotland, they say Inverness Even the name is magical! ~ Laurence Overmire (Previously published in The Ghost of Rabbie Burns: An American Poet's Journey Through Scotland, Indelible Mark Publishing,2016)