To the Editor:

Dr. Eugene Guazzo truly lives his life by his principles and values [“Making a Living and a Life,” September 2004, page 70]. In 1977, while I was a resident at the University of Maryland, I was lucky to work in his office, the Chaptico Infirmary, and our family lived with his family on his farm. The experience was the highlight of my training. Dr. Guazzo’s lifestyle – moving from overalls in the tobacco barn in the morning to tails at a function in Washington, D.C., in the evening – is the envy of anyone whose life is not exactly as he had planned.

Dr. Guazzo’s passion for the people, land and water of tidewater Maryland, was inspiring. I recall meeting him at the office in the morning as he arrived in full riding habit, having galloped his horse over the miles of fields between his farm and office.

None of this was an accident. I had never seen anyone else speak so openly and frankly with his colleagues and have them love him for it. Patients, too, received the same honesty and were grateful. For me, hours spent away from the office, in the kitchen talking about life, were as valuable as the lessons with patients.