The Spectrum.

We all find ourselves on one side or the other, but how does it feel to understand both sides of the spectrum at the same time?  Having come full circle in one spectrum scenario, I can honestly say it is a spiritual realization.

My very first Couch Surfers, two Germans and one Aussie, introduced me the to responsibility of being a Couch Surfing Host to strangers in a strange land. To me, it was easy. All I did was say, “So here is your couch and a towel. The shower is at the top of the stairs. Do you need anything else?” After I “tucked” them in, I went up to my room and fell soundly asleep. To me, I had done nothing.

My first CS Host, a Frenchman in Amsterdam, hosted me for a planned two days and a nerve-wracking unplanned extra 3 days, including my 25th birthday. He offered me the easy usual: a place to sleep, some tourist advice, a towel and a shower; but, he also offered something that, to him, was obscure: peace of mind. There it was. Peace of mind. Offered to me from a stranger in a strange land. When I couldn’t get home for several days and all my plans were non-existent, he gave me what I needed, a chance to rest my bones and recalculate, or relax. After he “tucked” me in and went up to his room, he probably fell soundly asleep, as I did just the same on the pull out mattress in this two-story flat in Amsterdam, Netherlands… 3,869 miles away from my comfortable bed in America.

Now, I host my Couch Surfers differently. I still say the usual and “tuck” them in and soundly sleep in my warm bed. However, I now understand how they are feeling having experienced it myself.  To wander a strange land, mostly on your own where the customs, rules, and communications are totally different, would scare the be-jesus out of anyone.  I actively offer them, before they even step into my house, a warm safe place, their home away from home.

When you experience it, you understand from the inside out.