Natascha Birovljev
An author in Canada
Author and storyteller - my lived dream in Canada
But my passion
did not lie in journalism
Fascinated by alternative healing methods for animals, I decided to study veterinary medicine. So I moved to Hanover to attend the University of Veterinary Medicine, again with my horse in tow. After a year, however, I had run out of steam and my degree felt like a cage I had to break out of. So I switched to German studies and religious studies at the University of Hanover. This course of study allowed me to take classes on alternative healing methods for animals on the side.
My life’s path finally seemed to be headed on a straight trajectory, my studies were fun, my master’s degree was in sight, and I was planning a doctoral dissertation in religious studies. In 2001, I went on a riding vacation at a ranch in Canada—two weeks of vacation that I later could not get out of my mind. After successfully completing my master’s degree, I traveled to the same guest ranch again a year later. The plan was to take one last vacation before plunging into my doctoral work. But then I feel in love—with this wild country, with the Rocky Mountains, and with a cowboy.
My search for happiness in Canada
It was time to drop my future plans, once again, and to seek happiness in Canada. In 2005 I emigrated for good, married my cowboy and for the next few years guided tourists from all over the world on horseback to the Rocky Mountains. Adventures, campfires, wild horses, moose, bears, wolves were all suddenly part of my life. A day-to-day life that really couldn’t be any more wonderful. We bought a ranch three hours east of the Banff and Jasper national parks. A little paradise.
But unfortunately, after a few years, the marriage began to crumble and when my mother died suddenly in 2012, my life was thrown off track again. I was sustained by my unwavering love for my new home in Canada and for my ranch, where I was able to stay after separating from my husband.
My spirit longed for new moments of happiness, however, and it ultimately found them in writing. The idea for my first book started to take shape. With the help of an online writing course, some great fellow writers, and plenty of perseverance, I was eventually able to hold my first book, Shadow Horses of the Rocky Mountains, in my hands in summer 2017. What an amazing feeling that was! Since then, I’ve been gripped by writing fever and there are already new ideas for more books in my head.
Canada
It was only supposed to be a vacation, but this wonderful country and its stunning nature enchanted me from the very beginning.
Writing
The feeling of happiness I get from jotting down ideas and stories, watching them grow, and then publishing them, is indescribable.
Reading
The rustling of book pages, stories that captivate me—when I’m reading, I forget everything else around me.
Sunrise
On my ranch, I love to enjoy the sunrise with a cup of coffee on the porch, taking in the amazing view of the Rocky Mountains.
Riding
Riding was already a big passion of mine as a child, and that hasn’t changed.
Dogs
Apart from horses, dogs are my other faithful companions. And what ranch would be complete without a dog?