Yeah, there are a few running around the board, shooting down the notion of the clans and clan chiefs and then saying, "Oh, but don't let all these facts ruin your fun."

We all know the clan system is long dead. We all know that the notion of clan tartans was an idea to boost wool sales. And we all know that the clan system was a tough, nasty way of life much of the time and that it has been romanticized over the years.

But so what?

I enjoy the sense of belonging. I enjoy feeling like I'm part of something that's bigger than myself, something that's timeless and ancient. I enjoy knowing where my family -- one really old branch of it, anyway -- came from and knowing that they were part of something unique and important in the history and evolution of their nation.

For me, "my clan" means a group of people to whom I am connected by common names, common history, common struggles and maybe common DNA.

Right now, we don't have a chief, so I can't speak too much to that, but I would imagine that I'd feel a connectedness to him as a "senior" member of the family, someone who has a particularly close and important connection to our common ancestors.

Is my affiliation with a clan why I wear a particular tartan? Sure. But I'm not going to limit myself and not wear certain tartans that I like or that resonate with me, for whatever reason. And I certainly won't be offended or even bothered if someone who isn't affiliated with my clan wears the tartan, so long as they wear it with pride and respect.

I don't know if this is even close to what you're looking for, but this is what it's about to me. It's about belonging and that need to be part of something bigger.