“I knew there was a reason we met, things were all in line. Please, make yourself comfortable, this is a safe place” said Frank Coppieters as I set foot in a room surrounded by spiritual items and photographs of many honored names. Some were clearly members of different religions but many I did not recognize.
I took off my backpack and sat down in a chair feeling relieved after transferring three buses through metro Portland to an old house that at one time was surrounded by farmland. As I peered around the room to take in my surroundings
I looked up and saw a square window in the ceiling with scattered oak tree leaves on it. The hint of sunlight outdoors created a beam of light that came right down on a laying surface. “That is where I do all my reiki, it is a great energy channel.”
I felt powerful energy whenever around Frank. A native of Belgium, Frank has been a strong believer in different forms of meditation and he has explored many avenues of energy transfer from Usui Shiki Ryoho reiki to European ancient shamanism. He married American Kathy Melcher in 1985 and had been operating his reiki practice and education in Portland since 1986. The old farm feel combined with the relics of spiritual energy brought a sense of wisdom the second one entered his home.
I laid on the surface and stared straight up at the ceiling window with the leaves. It was the first glimpse of autumn and the change of seasons. Once I was positioned, Frank asked “Are you comfortable? Are you ready to begin?” I nodded, heard a few very deep breaths then two slowly hovering hands above my body.
I have always had an issue with thinking patterns during any type of meditation but when I can turn off my thoughts or at least channel them the benefits come through regardless of the method. As Frank began the reiki, thoughts turned into dreams of far away wilderness and eventually into a more tangible setting of rolling hills with scattered small forests. While the energy work took place, the dream of small forests triggered a visual memory of a forest in rural Belgium my family had driven through a few months before this visit in Portland. The forest was a quick pullover we took right before we entered a community farm we stayed at for a few days. The farm was called La Ferme du Bois-le-Comte, and as Frank continued reiki a whole series of memories returned.
La Ferme du Bois-le-Comte is one of the most picturesque rural hostels, with old brick buildings around a stable for beautiful horses. From the outside it was a well maintained boutique place to stay in the Belgian countryside. We pulled in right across from two horses being groomed; their manes were perfectly straight and shined as light flared with the sun coming down. Other than the two girls grooming the horses there wasn’t anyone around. We decided to start exploring and found a second floor room that we believed was where we were staying. The room was empty with a bunk bed with blank mattresses as well as a barren closest. It seemed a bit odd but the view of the property was stunning as we saw the horses walk around.
Suddenly we heard a rather frantic sound of someone walking fast up the stairs. “Bonjour! Welcome” said the woman as she brought a stack of sheets and towels to our room. “My name is Anke Jacobs and welcome to the facilities. We’re transitioning some guests right now and only have a few staff members. If you guys need anything I can’t promise I’ll be up front but just look around and hopefully you’ll find me.” She started to leave, paused and looked up as if she was going to say more but she turned her head and left the room.
When she left and we had carried our bags in, I remembered how exhausted we’d been after a long flight and transferring around different cities in Europe with a one year old. We had rings around our eyes and decided to lay low and try to catch up on sleep. We went to the community dinner but ate off to the side trying not to make conversation. When the sun set we fell into our first deep sleep of the trip instantly.
We woke later than expected and felt rejuvenated. Looking out our window the place was alive with different groups at different tables. There was a group discussing farming; there was another group gathered for expressing sexuality. There were tables filled with friends laughing and somehow all came together on this warm sunny day. The energy was palpable.
“How did you find this place?” an American sounding voice interrupted. We spun around to see a grey haired man with a goatee and a cooking apron on. “Seriously we never get random small families, especially not Americans. I’m Mark.” Mark Harold Hanna was the main chef of the facilities. Born and raised in Detroit, he had also spent some time in Oakland.
We continued to meet various people and dove into interesting conversations. Mark showed me the kitchen in full action and we exchanged stories of bending life paths to get where we are. We learned more about Anke volunteering here to appreciate simplicity and reflect on her life path. Other people staying were from all over Europe. We explored the beautiful farm area; wandering rows of vegetables growing with our son rambling alongside. We would sit and watch the majestic horses stroll around the property, light hitting their back tails in a glimmer. We felt at peace and content with just being present and finally easing in.
After time stood still it was suddenly our departure day. We packed and went down to eat breakfast at the community tables saying goodbye to the people we had only just formed connections with. And then we met Frank. A powerful aura was felt through wisdom, humility and kindness. He was not trying to present himself but rather knew when the time was right to introduce. We spoke for about 10 minutes and quickly knew we’d meet again soon in the U.S. The concept of energy work doesn’t always sit with our western notions of scientific studies and statistics but with people such as Frank the power of energy is hard to refute by any with an open mind.
My memory of La Ferme du Bois-le-Comte remains engraved almost as a dream made tangible. A place with the power to drop family stress and the addiction of smartphones by its strong presence and our immediate desire to embrace it. As we drove out through the trees the memories appeared to fade as the trees turned into pure white.We had a moment of nothing but movement through a white void.
I slowly came back to consciousness in Frank’s home in Portland, I recognized the power of energy when channeled appropriately. “I felt that. That was extremely powerful energy upon that memory. I knew there was a reason we met in Belgium. Reiki is strong and can be taught with the ability to give yourself sessions. With that, aligned with mutual experience, is a very powerful form of connection.”
Since our first meeting in Belgium and rounds of reiki in Portland, Frank moved back to his Belgium homeland during the pandemic. La Ferme du Bois-le-Comte also lost one of its key members of the community that we had met from COVID-19; the energy in mourning was felt across the Atlantic Ocean when we heard. Energy bridges places and people, showing how even brief connections can last.
