About

I grew up in a very stable living situation. My parents bought their home a few years before I was born and 45 years later they still own it. So for the first 18 years of my life, I lived in the same home. We were not a traveling family, but I did leave the country once in that time to go to Israel. For the next five years, I lived and traveled the lower 48 states extensively and got myself to 47 of those states. This was mostly hippie style in VW’s and a hippie bus. Woven through these years, I began to take a great interest in herbalism, nutrition and cooking, and gardening. Although I wasn’t able to maintain my own garden, always being on the move!

When I was 23 I moved to Oregon sight unseen and have lived there ever since. My study of herbalism and nutrition intensified with teachers in Eugene and Portland. Sometimes my herbal studies took me abroad to Italy and Costa Rica and I really enjoyed witnessing the connection between plants, the earth, and people. The plants and geography would vary greatly, and yet, the appreciation and methods of using the plants often shared a common thread. I was beginning to realize that the world is woven together through a tapestry, a rich and intricate one at that. And I was more than eager to attempt to understand some of those threads.

My travel was somewhat limited for years, as I was focusing on child rearing. I did do a lot of traveling on the west coast and when I would be on the road I immediately switched into adventure mode, which is surely a different way of being, from the daily grind. And I also loved to listen to other people’s travels and live vicariously through them. I was endlessly intrigued by the interesting people to meet and things to do and places to see, that were decidedly all very different from Oregon.  I felt like traveling transported me to a different reality and had the potential for much more.

In my late 30’s, I made the shift from child rearer to empty nester and the urge and desires that had been stewing for years inside of me were eager to get expressed. And so, I have dedicated to myself to get off of local soil at least a few times a year. My homebody personality does not allow me to take four to six month long trips through a couple continents. I crave a bit more structure than that. But one to four weeks at a time, I have been exploring different countries and continents and different parts of the US and different parts of Oregon. The US is so large, there is endless exploration to be had there. Heck, Alaska is so large, there is endless exploration to be had, there alone. For me, I have found the sweet spot, and that is about three to four trips a year. It provides me with the perfect balance of stability and adventure.

My years of studying herbalism and nutrition have become so much a part of me, that they can no longer be separated from me. They are part of almost everything I do. And so, you will notice by reading my blog that when I get to a new place, I am on the lookout for medicinal plants, interesting looking plants, local markets, and where is the best food served.

I have begun and continue to weave my own tapestry of the world, to enrich my own understanding of what it is to be human. I am deeply honored to visit new lands and be a citizen of the earth.

I am honored that you have chosen to come along for the ride …