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7| The IFP -H alton H ills | T hursday,July 5,2018 theifp.ca • Truck Accessories • Upholstery • Heavy Equipment Glass •Window Tinting 354 Guelph Street, Georgetown 905-873-1655 Wehandleall insurance work. We handle all insurance work. • your window & door professionals • 11 Mountainview Rd., N. Georgetown, ON L7G 4T3 905.873.0236 www.buy-wise.ca info@buy-wise.ca • awarded readers choice 27 times • Visit our showroom Furnace Air Conditioning Gaslines Boilers Water Heaters Radiant Heating 905-877-3100 proud local dealer of Canadian made products .ca The title of this column is from a Bob Dylan song of the same name. Whenever I hear those words, I'm reminded of that philosophical quote, "The only constant in life is change." So, when it comes to Brown Farm, the times certainly are a-changin'. Ten years ago, The Side- kick and I began a venture, investing in ten registered purebred Rideau Arcott ewe lambs, and a regis- tered purebred ram, who we affectionately called 'Dodge' in reference to the Dodge Ram truck. We had other rams over the years - Hemi (also of the Ram series), our sweet, gentle Angus, friendly McDuff and Fergus, who still reside at Brown Farm and last year's rent-a-ram Buddy. During that decade, we've had good times, see- ing beautiful lambs born in February, and watched them grow into breeding stock, while the ram lambs were raised for market. It was demanding work, but satisfying, seeing the fruits of our labours grow before our eyes. We had some trying times, thinking back to February of 2014, when the temperature plummeted to -20 C for more than three weeks, causing us to lose 24 lambs to hyperthermia. So it was ten years ago The Sidekick and I became shepherds. And as all things have a beginning and an end, we will be retiring from rais- ing sheep, before winter. We've been talking about when we would shut down the sheep operation- we just didn't know when. But last December, we were contacted by a col- league who had a buyer in- terested in acquiring 100 ewe lambs, to set up an op- eration in Prince Edward Island this spring. Neither my colleague and I could collectively supply 100 ewe lambs this spring - but we could work toward it. During the negotiating, the buyer suggested he'd accept young adult ewes as well. Back to our flock inven- tory sheets and we found we could be close to reach- ing his target. And when he accepted ewes in good shape born in 2013 or later - well, The Sidekick and I were able to come up with 24 ewe lambs and 29 ma- ture ewes - leaving us with only 11 senior ewes, which includes two of the origi- nal ten ewes we bought a decade ago. So with that catalyst provided by our buyer, The Sidekick and I decided this was the opportune time to disperse the flock. I won't lie, it is bitter- sweet. Yesterday a 53 foot dou- ble-decker livestock trac- tor trailer threaded a nee- dle to get up to the loading door of our barn, and we loaded the 53 sheep, to start on their 26 hour jour- ney, the first leg to Quebec, then be transferred to an- other truck, which drives non-stop to P.E.I. As they were loaded, I watched the fear in their eyes, and thought back to those times I'd helped them give birth, or treat a sickness that required me- dication. I thought of the time one of them laid her head in my lap, in appreciation for helping her through a dif- ficult birth. That brought a tear to my eye. Years ago, I spoke with an elderly woman who had raised sheep. She told me that I was "privileged" to be, "like a good shepherd, responsible for all the sta- ples of that flock of sheep." I'd never thought of it that way before. But watching that truck head out the driveway, I had a knot in my gut. The responsibility and safety for my flock was ebbing away from me. We still have a few sheep left, but their future is not great. They're past their prime, and will be gone be- fore winter. So I'll focus on the good times, those times when, like a good shepherd, we kept our flock safe, and we kept them well. Yes sir, the times, they are a-changin' for sure. And The Sidekick and I are a-changin' with them. - Ted Brown is a free- lance columnist for the IFP. He can be reached at tedbit@hotmail.com. OPINION The times, they are a-changin' Whenever I hear those words, I'm reminded of that philosophical quote, 'The only constant in life is change,' writes Ted Brown TED BROWN Column THEN & NOW Opened in 1936, the Georgetown Post Office on Mill Street became too crowded within three decades of use and closed in 1963. Pictured here circa 1950, "Big Ben" is one of the few federal buildings constructed during the Great Depression to have a costly clock tower design. Today, the Art Deco structure is used as an apartment building. Esquesing Historical Society