Originally from Memphis, Tennessee, I grew up coast to coast and in between. Those experiences fed my wanderlust and set the stage for life on the move. In many ways it was fragmented, but, in retrospect, the education has been priceless.

I explored the performing arts for much of my young adult life, but eventually returned to school for a degree in nursing (UMass/Boston). I’ve practiced nursing for 20 years in the areas of HIV/AIDS, oncology, cardiology, elder care, and critical care and did some graduate study. After nearly 30 years of urban life, the last 15 in Miami, it was time for change. Over five years ago, I moved to a small farm in Northeast Tennessee (Appalachia) to nurture my lifelong interest in gardening and to provide a home for animals.

I’ve always had an interest in alternative health, but didn’t pursue it. But then something happened as I studied organics and connected to the land. My life began to heal. Herbs came into the picture with the animals in my care. I looked for non-chemical wormers and from there, began to study herbs. As I read and took courses I found myself re-evaluating my take on health and healing. After much searching, and reading Planetary Herbology by Michael Tierra, I enrolled in the East West School of Planetary Herbology in January 2011. It was an excellent decision. In this school I found a community and a system for understanding how to use herbs for more than symptom management or as a replacement for pharmaceuticals. I am new to the program and realize that I have only begun to scratch the surface on the way to understanding the practice of herbalism and the body’s inherent ability to heal itself.

Life is becoming my hobby. I still play in the arts, but I am very busy most of the time with my old house, the farm, animals, a job in a small ER, my studies, and protecting my garden from marauders (without harming them). My goal is to create a more sustainable life including the healing arts and to provide services to that end.

My website is a work in progress: www.goatberryhill.com