When I was asked to write this biography by Hercules. I really thought I knew where to start. I suppose at the beginning and we’ll see
where it goes.
Born in San Bernadino, California in 1968 to Bob and Betty
Perkins, a twin sister and an older sister. We were quite the surprise to our
mother for she had miscarried a set of twin boys prior to becoming pregnant
with us. The Goddess was DETERMINED she
would have twins! Bobby had retired from service to the USAF while in
California. He soon relocated his family
to Fort Myers, Florida, wanting to enjoy the growth of the southwest Florida
area, working as a mechanical contractor, then moving up to become a plumbing
inspector for the City of Fort Myers and helping to advance and improve
building and plumbing codes all over the state of Florida, especially after the
devastation caused by Hurricane Andrew.
Betty was a full-time mother, teacher and business
owner. She believed in a healthy
education for her girls, teaching them to read and comprehend what they read
before they reached Kindergarden. Summer times were filled with education. She
believes in a healthy body followed a healthy mind, and empty hands were the
‘devil’s workshop.’ She was involved in PTA, Girl Scouts and Mothers on
Patrol.
But this story is about me, I guess. I can’t involve what I do unless I talk about
my parents. Learning to read and
comprehend at an early age, I remember when we were asked to come read to the
higher grades and explaining what we read.
My earliest memories are of the local skating rink, where I didn’t want
to hang onto the railings, I was out with the big fish and if I fell, so what? The second memory I have is in Kindergarden
on a wet day and the teacher was showing a film on ancient Egypt and
Greece. I saw the pictures and was
captivated. I wanted to learn all about
those ancient times and places. I began
to read fables, myths and history of ancient lands, trying to act them out as
well.
Subsequently, I began to question
what I was learning in my church. My
grandmother insisted that Tammy (my twin) and I attend Sunday School and
church. (Southern Baptist) My parents
never had to go, just us. It seemed to
me that there had to be more than just God out there. I asked about Isis, Gaea, Hercules, etc. I was told that nothing like that existed
before the Bible. One of the ten
commandments were. “thou shalt have no other gods before ME” and that the
people who lived before Christ came to Earth all were in Hell. Well that didn’t
make any sense to me, there was history involved. I also got in trouble with my mother for
building an altar to mourn the death of Anwar Sadat in Egypt. Mom told me that myths and fables were just
that, make believe. She even sent us to
a Baptist private school when the bullying I was undergoing in school went too
far. My questions still went with
me. Unlike the children praying to God
in chapel, I prayed to more than that. I
didn’t know what yet, but I knew it was out there. The bullying didn’t stop in
the “Christian” school. In fact, it
amplified.
In high school, we were
transferred out into a public school and I was reawakened back to the world of
the independent thinker. I excelled in
history, civics, art, band and thought about a career as an archaeologist. I was introduced to the works of Silver
Ravenwolf, Raymond Buckland, Gerald Gardner, Marcus Aurelius, Cicero, Cato by
the librarian who wanted to help satisfy my thirst for knowlege. I felt reborn. There WAS something more out there.
After graduating high school in
1986, I meandered for a while, occasionally volunteering for digs in Estero and
Naples, marrying, having a child and divorcing, until I discovered my talent in
medical assisting, graduating in 2003 from Hodges University Sum Cum
Laude. I worked in an ER, Urgent Care
Center and to my passion, asthma and allergy.
I also discovered a love of teaching patients about how to manage their
care. I also rediscovered myself as well metaphysically, becoming a student
with the Correllian Nativist Tradition working on my first degree.
During this time, I started to
take Reiki lessons to augment the natural gift of healing I had been given by
God/dess. In the state of Florida, you need to be an ordained minister to
provide Reiki and the Universal Life Church allowed me to become ordained. I provide pagan counseling and rituals for
weddings, passings and other life milestones. I plan to establish a Correllan
Nativist Tradition shrine after obtaining my High Priestesshood.
I also taught at Heritage
Institute as a CMA educator. Other teachers used to bring me in for my lectures
on the History of Medicine as well as discussions on ‘esoteric’ medicines and respecting
religion and religious practices in medicine.
I also remarried and had two
other children. Both of these children
are special needs children (ADHD/Autism) as they are on opposite ends of the autism
spectrum so I am working on becoming their advocate in school and the outside
world. I also became involved in feral
feline rescue and other animal rescues as well.
I’ve rescued cats, dogs, ferrets, birds and either found homes of them
or supported them as they found their way to the Rainbow Bridge. Due to the needs of my children, I had to
leave my full-time job with Heritage. I
work now two part-time jobs, one at a restaurant and the other at a local
skating rink. Even there I find opportunities to teach. (I believe I “walking the talk”.) I teach beginning skating and still tutor on
my favorite subjects, history, religion, literature. When I have nothing better to do (HA!) I find
myself picking up my knitting needles, writing, or skating and announcing with
the local roller derby.
Larger than Life Living in the World Today
(c) 1975-2017 Hercules Invictus
