A NOSTALGIC LOOK AT THE PAST
by Jim Emerton
Nearly 40 years after my original introductions, I reflect on many of the key pigeons that were characters in the evolution of a strain. They become the central foci of a man’s contemplation and imagination. This is one of the joys of an obsessive fixation on a related group of individual pigeons. You always remember the fruits of your labour, since they are like extensions of your hopes, dreams and desires. This is the beauty of the singular act of a close breeding programme, devoid of commercial motives, and it takes on a purist, almost religious connotation. It is like a monk attending to his bees in a monastery garden. The nature of the beast is both heritage and legacy, the past, present and the future. As I mark my moments in sport with birds of favour, breeding is a pursuit that inhabits a lofty place beyond the push and shove, the collective craze of day-to-day racing. It is the work of idealists, perfectionists, thinkers and dreamers - try it for yourself.
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Elimar - December 2014
