My Story

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When I look back on my time spent growing up in South Africa I can see how threads of magic and peace have been woven into my life’s tapestry. As a child I believed in Fairies and all sorts of magical creatures, and I spent many happy hours exploring my mother’s beautiful garden in search of fairy rings, magical portals and other natural wonders. Being brought up Catholic I have never forgotten the wonderful sense of peace and serenity I experienced whenever I sat quietly in a church pew. Even though I no longer go to church regularly I can never resist exploring any new church I come across. Both these memories remind me of times when my busy, questioning, analytical Virgo mind was still, and I was able to tap into the precious quite space in my heart.

Usually when it comes time for me to make decisions. I find my Virgo mind quickly likes to step up to the plate. This can lead to thoughts that go round and round, back and forth, which certainly make it harder to move out of my head space and drop into my heart. However, over the years there have been a few occasions when I have found myself making choices from a space of peaceful knowing, and the choices I made at that time usually changed the direction of my life path significantly.

The first happened in September 1972. At the time I was single and enjoying life when I met a new guy at a friend’s wedding. I never suspected that I would be married to him 2 ½ months later, but I was. No busy Virgo mind, no doubts, no second thoughts, and to top it all off, all my family were on board as well. This leap of faith put me on a 30-year path that I could never have imagined. One that was filled with all the amazing life experiences (highs and lows) a marriage, children, moves across country, moves to and around Germany, moves to Canada, back to Europe, back to Canada, across Canada, to the USA, back to Europe (Spain this time), and finally back to Canada, could bring.

The second was in 1994. I was in my mid forties and at a crossroads. I wanted a change and was exploring new career opportunities. When Reflexology was suggested, it just felt right, and I went looking for a local school that offered Reflexology Certification. While I found a school, they were only offering the Reflexology Certification in a few months time, on the other hand their Aromatherapy Certification Course was starting the very next week. To be honest at the time I knew nothing about Aromatherapy, but I thought why not take both courses and so I signed up. On Day 1 with my first sniff of lavender I realized I had discovered a new passion and a new career path. I ended up completing both Certification programs and soon opened my own small homebased practice. Since then, I have completed 3 additional aromatherapy certification courses, as well as a Diploma in Spiritual PhytoEssencing and three Natural Perfumery courses. By January 2005 I had also completed all three levels of the Bach Flower Remedies training. I was really enjoying learning about a myriad of different modalities and completed a variety of workshop that expanded and enriched my growing knowledge base. I was particularly drawn to energy healing and took introductory workshops in Touch for Health, Therapeutic Touch and Jin Shin Do, but it was when I was initiated into Reiki Level 1 In November 1995, that I found the energy modality that I really resonated with. I went on to complete Reiki Level II in January 1996 and became a Reiki Master in June 1996. It was while taking an 8-week color Therapy Course that another student mentioned that she thought I would also resonate with Eric Pearl and his Reconnective Healing. Although I quickly bought his book and wanted to pursue it further, I had to wait until September 2004 to formally take the Reconnective Healing, Levels 1/11 when it was offered in Seattle and when the Level III: The Reconnection was offered in Portland, Oregon in June 2005, I completed that as well.

One of the pluses of having a homebased practice has been that every time we moved, I was able to easily set up again and start seeing clients. But it was while I was living in Victoria BC that I first started teaching Aromatherapy Courses. While the course was set up as a home study course, I met with students privately to answer questions and teach the aromatherapy massage hands on. However, towards the end of 1996 we were on the move again and my husband transferred to the States. Since I couldn't take the school with me, I ended up selling my course material and student/enquiry database to a friend and colleague. Since I was not eligible to work in the US, I had to fill my time in McLean, Virginia with other pursuits, which included studying and staying as up to date as possible. However, when we moved to Spain I was once again able to start a small home-based practice. This time offering sessions to some of the German and English expats who lived in the area. In December 1998 the Wheel turned again and we returned to Canada, and I quickly set up my homebased practice. As we started to settle in my husband encouraged me to investigate the possibility of offering my courses differently. The internet was starting to become more popular, and the possibility of an online business seemed very attractive. The West Coast Institute of Aromatherapy was incorporated in April 1999 and with my course material and website ready I started offering and selling my courses to a growing audience.

The Bev Hawkins Membership Club grew out of my desire to create a community where information could be easily and informally shared with an interest. Choosing a low-priced subscription model as the platform for delivery offered me an opportunity to share in depth information in a relaxed and much less formal manner. I really enjoyed creating each month’s package, as well as the opportunity of being able to share and interact in a community. But once again it was time for a big change and in 2024, I started receiving messages and signs that it was time to wrap it all up and leave this part of my life behind. On the other hand, I had no inkling what, if anything, was going to replace what was a large part of my life and my identity. Although I resisted the messages kept coming until it became abundantly clear to me that the time to let go, trust and step into the unknown was now, and that nothing new would emerge for me until this chapter was closed. Which is why the Membership Club was closed at the end of October 2024.

In October and November, I was seeing to the nuts and bolts needed to close a business, December had the holidays, January the start of 2025, and February the start of a new lunar year, the Year of the Wooden Snake, and now what?

Meditation and Prayer have always been part of my schedule, but now I had more time for studying Tarot and drawing on Tarot and Oracle cards for inspiration and guidance. Then in early January when a friend asked me to open the Akashic Records, I was reminded that I had forgotten about using this very effective resource for myself. When I first learned the process back in January 2012, I had used it a lot for my own guidance and healing but along the way I had let the practice slide. With more time available I have once again been enjoying time spent here and have to say some of the insights have been very interesting.

Then when I stopped looking for it there was a shift and inspiration started flowing on the morning of February 7, 2025. The sense of urgency that accompanied the flow has been driving me forward and once again I have been making choices without input from my busy Virgo mind. Right now, change is all around me and I don’t know how it will all play out, but I am both interested and excited to find out.