CURRENT MISSION

I have space in my home and enjoy meeting people from other places. I'm a "motherly" type. I have enjoyed hosting exchange students and entertainers for Bountiful's Summerfest . I learned of Couchsurfers when my oldest son was planning world travels.

ABOUT ME
I was born in 1950, grew up in rural Tennessee. I have 3 grown up kids. Two live locally and are around often, the other lives in Chengdu, China. I divorced years ago. I am a retired physician/psychiatrist. I practice no formal religion. As a psychiatrist, I spent much of my life learning about other people's lives and have always been intrigued by what makes people tick. I especially enjoy learning about how other people see the world. I am drawn to people who have an inquisitive spirit and find this life fascinating and delicious.

I hope my friends appreciate my curiosity, humor, unique take on life (borne of being raised in the rural South of the US and "subsequent adventures" of being a mother and psychiatrist). I've done a bit of traveling, most of it pretty conventional, but I did travel all around Britain in 1977, often "hitching" and sometimes staying with kind strangers I would meet.

PHILOSOPHY

My roots formed in the Bible Belt (Christian).
My current personal philosophy has no name, as such. It is something borne of my Southern Christian roots and a lifetime of "seeking" and finding something to appreciate in people everywhere I go--sort of a namaste approach to human encounter.
I find wonder all around me, every day.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING
I began offering my home when my son joined Couchsurfing, thinking if he would be looking for places to stay abroad, I could offer my home to others.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

For years, no one requested to stay (not sure why they have 2013 as my entry. It was several years before that. Since then, I have had 2 guests and both were very pleasant experiences. I am happy to offer my home. I enjoy meeting people, especially from other countries with different views of the world from my own, learning about their culture, their travels, their life experience.

Interests

I enjoy taking care of my home and gardens. My children--now adults--have presented endless wonders/discoveries/fun/some worry, but have made my life so rich. I've always had an interest in travel and meeting people from other cultures and seeing places first hand, especially "where people live". I've enjoyed a number of long term relationships with beloved dogs and cats. I'm not especially talented in any area, but enjoy cooking and "keeping house". I worked for 30 years as a psychiatrist and have recently retired.

I enjoy a little hiking, like to take photos. I never cease to be amazed by the kindness of people I have met on my travels and have also forged lasting relationships with some "visitors" to our home--some students who have lived with us and some visitors thru the Utah Council for Citizen Diplomacy.

• cats
• dogs
• culture
• cooking
• traveling
• socializing
• hiking
• medicine
• religion

Music, Movies, and Books

Yes.
I watch movies, I listen to music, I read books.
I enjoy all kinds of music--except rap (even some rap lyrics I find meaningful, but putting them to that boring music seems a desecration of whatever poetry is there. I have a son who enjoys breakdancing, though, and some of the Hip Hop music works well for that). I usually clean house to Big Band music. My car radio is set to classical, but I usually listen to books in my car.
I like many different kinds of books and read something for pleasure most days. I'm currently reading Greg Iles: his character development is among the best I've seen, but I sometimes question the amount of time he takes me to "dark places".
I enjoy well-made period movies, movies with psychologically engaging characters, story lines that make me think and ponder, afterward. I watch British dramas and mysteries. I recently enjoyed The Life of Pi (allegory) and the brilliant acting in Lincoln. (This was written some years ago. I have enjoyed many different movies and books since then--too numerous to recount.)
I enjoy the poetry of Emily Dickinson, Hafiz, Rumi, Mary Oliver, for example.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

The extreme generosity of the people I met in Thailand when I spent 6 weeks there in 2012 was amazing.
I treated the severely mentally ill for many years. The courage it must take to endure that life amazes me.
I don't think that I have, personally, done anything really amazing. Well, maybe it was a bit amazing for a hillbilly kid from rural Tennessee to believe she could be a medical doctor, then to practice medicine while raising 3 kids, essentially, on my own.
All of life is amazing!

Teach, Learn, Share

Maybe by meeting more people, I will learn more about what I know or don't know. I have spent a lifetime around my children and the mentally ill. I do enjoy the company of "ordinary people", learning of their lives and, hopefully, staying in touch (should they choose) in the future, if we get on. I've so enjoyed "following" the lives of former students who have stayed here.
I am not highly accomplished in things that I could really "teach" to a visitor. In that way, I'm pretty "ordinary".
Please enter "Want to meet Sadie and Cooper" in your request, so that I know you have read my profile and don't mind sharing "home" with my furry friends.

What I Can Share with Hosts

Whatever they have the curiosity to know about me and my life.
Offer to reciprocate, should they come to our beautiful part of the world.

Countries I’ve Visited

Canada, China, Croatia, Finland, Gibraltar, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Laos, Mexico, Morocco, Myanmar, Portugal, Russian Federation, Spain, Thailand, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States