Why did the boss man pick him to go to the town's meeting? There wasn't anything special about him. Maybe the boss man thought he was better than the other shepherds at understanding English? Maybe he was - if he wasn't half drunk?
It was the mid sixties in Idaho. The group of sheep herders rarely got opportunity to go to town. When they did, the liked to let loose and party a little bit.
Our hero was a little tipsy when he was told the boss wanted him to attend a town's meeting. He didn't understand exactly why, but he'd hoped that maybe he'd figure it out while he was there?
The proceedings of the meeting went too fast for him to follow. Things were appearing to be wrapping up and he caught a word that got his attention. It was familiar. Maybe it was what the boss man sent him there for? Quickly, he raised his hand.
It was a day or two after that before somebody explained things to him. He'd inadvertantly volunteered to provide solid waste service for the town. Hauling garbage? What?!
The thought must have occured to him to get out of that commitment. He was drunk, he didn't understand English, he didn't even know why he was at the town meeting to begin with. But he came from a very rigid and demanding culture.
Suffering was to be endured without complaint. Hard work - no matter how demeaning was revered! Every man aspired to be a noble man. Giving your word was a big deal. It had to be honored. So he proceeded with a little bit of reluctance.
The first thing he did was to go to every sheep herder in camp to ask for a loan. He had to get enough money to buy an old pickup truck to haul garbage. Every shepherd contributed to his plight and that was the beginnings of his business.
That smallish Idaho town would thrive in the coming years. Hollywood movie stars would discover the area and buy properties. Tourism took hold and the area flourished. Our hero became a multi-millionaire providing a service that nobody elso wanted anything to do with. He was the right person in the right place at the right time.
