Historically, a man’s worth has been determined by his ability to provide for his family. Sadly, we’ve lost sight of this in recent years.
Some of my earliest memories are of time spent hunting with my dad, and fishing with both of my parents. And of course being taught how to garden by my mom and grandparents. These early lessons have made me who I am today. My family rarely eats meat we haven’t harvested ourselves. As I like to say, “The very best organic meat that money can’t even buy.” With a 5000-square-foot organic vegetable garden at a current work site, we are provided with plenty of the best.
My love of the outdoors is, above all else, my reason to be.
Early in my 20s, I wisely decided to be self-employed. I started a landscaping company, with the goal of one day owning a retail gardening business. After only five years, I opened Como Lake Garden Centre in Coquitlam, British Columbia, a suburb of Vancouver. Along the way, a growing facility was added in Pitt Meadows. For twenty-seven years this was my work life.
I chose this profession for two reasons: I loved it, and the seasonality of a gardening shop allows for lots of time off in the fall. Truly the best of both worlds.
Semi-retirement finds me working as a property manager, managing luxury properties in Vancouver. Again, a profession that allows me five months of vacation a year. Although there certainly are long trips back from sunny Mexico in the winter when problems arise.
With Dream Rams of British Columbia now complete, I find I very much miss the work. There’s nothing finer in life than being a sheep detective—hearing about a big ram that has been taken and trying to ferret out the details. Some of the rams in this book took me months to track down. As I sit here wondering if I have another book in me, I suspect the answer is yes. I’m already outlining Dream Rams of the North in my mind.
One of the most important things in life we can do is to volunteer. My cause is the Wild Sheep Society of BC, the British Columbia affiliate of the Wild Sheep Foundation. I’ve been involved with the organization for twenty-five years and still enjoy it immensely. My favorite thing in life is sheep hunting. My second favorite thing is helping the sheep, making sure they are here for future generations.
Bill Pastorek