Cat’s Story
Side view, hmm? sure, why not!
Catherine had experienced mystical encounters since she was young but kept them private for much of her life. She felt something was “wrong” with her and saw psychology as a path to “fix” herself and her “broken” family.
While pursuing her B.A in psychology, Catherine faced significant challenges. Her mother was battling severe clinical depression after leaving her father, which impacted Catherine’s grades and prevented her from pursuing a prestigious Master’s degree in Counselling Psychology.
Around this time, she befriended individuals with physical and mental disabilities, a connection that marked the beginning of her long and fulfilling career in mental health. She completed a professional college degree in Special Education and Counselling, before returning to university to complete a Master’s degree in Educational Psychology.
Her professional journey began at a non-profit organization, where she worked as a recreational animator, helping adults with intellectual disabilities integrate into society. She then spent a few years in government roles before transitioning to help manage a private community residence for adults with serious mental health challenges.
Traumatic Times
Rosacea, crow’s feet and no filters.
Well, at least the garden is coming along.
Catherine grew up in a poor and traumatic home, shaped by an alcoholic father and a clinically depressed mother. From as young as age 3, she felt out of place within her family, harboring a deep desire to escape from the people who called themselves her parents. When Catherine was just 2 years old, her mother left her father but, regrettably, returned shortly after. Catherine had vivid memories of being abandoned by both parents. Inspired by the movie Annie, she considered running away but feared a worse fate might await her.
As a loving yet fiercely independent child, Catherine coped as best as she could. However, by age 8, the challenges of school and family life began to take their toll, and she became withdrawn, bitter, and isolated. Food became her refuge amidst the chaos of her father’s nightly drunken returns and her mother’s reliance on her as a parentified child. When her mother finally left her father with police intervention, the strain between mother and daughter remained.
Throughout her childhood, Catherine endured feelings of self-hatred, exacerbated by being labeled a “devil child” and told she would never amount to anything. The rejection she faced from her parents and peers weighed heavily on her, yet she sought solace in education. Her pursuit of higher learning, including psychology, was often met with scorn, derided as “uppity psychology,” as she fought to rise above her circumstances and reclaim a sense of self-worth.
A Return to Holism
Some days your mind is just like this box: seemingly aglow…but really just full of noise and trash.
At 32, Catherine was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, an autoimmune disorder she came to view as a reflection of unexpressed emotions and deep-seated self-hatred. At the time, she felt as though every area of her life was “in the toilet.” She was living in a community residence with her boyfriend, whom she wasn’t in love with, weighed 175 pounds, and found little joy in her daily life. This marked the beginning of her journey toward holistic living.
Determined to transform her life, Catherine adopted a raw vegan lifestyle, began exercising daily, and became certified as a personal trainer through the YMCA and CanFit Pro. She immersed herself in the teachings of mystical authors like Dr. Gabriel Cousens, whose book Conscious Living offered her a new perspective on holistic health and spiritual growth. A chance encounter at a local health food store led her to a naturopath who became both her boyfriend and a dear friend.
After moving in together, Catherine established a twice-daily meditation practice and delved into the teachings of spiritual masters, including Omraam Mikhaël Aïvanhov, Mantak Chia, and Jerry Alan Johnson. Her interest in natural healing deepened, prompting her to study naturopathy, Traditional Chinese Medicine, and acupressure.
Amidst this transformative period, Catherine fell deeply in love—not with her boyfriend, who had always been more of a fellow traveler on the spiritual path, but with Osho and Mother Nature. She began teaching herself foraging and wildcrafting, venturing into nature to collect herbs and plants for food and medicine. Hours were spent immersed in Osho’s podcasts, soaking up the wisdom and bathing in the energy of the Master.
Embracing the Mystic Journey
Cat Under the Cedar
The Whispering World of Nature
Not long after that “minding the gaps” experience, life invited her deeper. One evening, out for a jog, her foot caught on a tree root splitting through the sidewalk. She fell—physically, yes, but symbolically too. With pain in her ankle and tears behind her eyes, she limped home. Jogging gave way to slow walks. And with this slower pace… she began to notice.
She began to feel in communion with all the Trees and Nature.
She began to have encounters with insects such as flies and wasps, with wild plants such as dandelion and mugwort, with houseplants such as aloe and amaryllis, with birds, squirrels and raccoons. And with wordless Tree Masters that shared mystical messages as downloaded thought-forms.
On one occasion, she found herself sharing a melon with wasp friends.
On another, a fly came to visit, and she marvelled at its metallic wings.
Another time, she returned home to find her yellow-jacket spider friend dead in its web, sprayed by poison. She burst into tears and wept at the quiet, unnoticed passing.
On yet another occasion, she marveled at the pacing of an ant, sitting underneath the burning sun as the electric wires hummed the universal sound of Om.
On her foraging jaunts, Gaia called to her to unearth what was already there. One day, motherwort called to her to discover her prickly flowers. On another day, in a wooded area of the suburbs, the energy tugged at her to discover heart-shaped violet leaves hidden in a less-trodden path. On yet another time, listening to the voice of master Osho in her ears, dandelion parts strewn over the grassy lawn, Dandelion whispered to her about the emptiness of itself. All empty in its parts. Empty as the inside of a drum. The heartbeat of the the universe… was emptiness itself.
Indeed, it seemed nature had flung open its doors— or rather, a door that had always been open. In awareness, in silence, in wonderment—with enraptured attention of not-knowing—Catherine had walked through what felt like a welcoming embrace: a gentle rocking of being held in the womb of the infinite Divine.
Cat Under the Sun
Mystical Moments & Tree Masters
Catherine had always known something else was there—an unseen world humming just beneath the surface. From a young age, mystical experiences stirred in her, but she rarely spoke of them. The first person she ever confided in was her then-boyfriend, a fellow meditator. He told her, “I’m here to bring you to the Light.”
She didn’t understand what he meant. Her mind, trained in psychology, labeled their bond as a mirror for healing her inner child. But five years into meditating twice daily, everything changed.
One day, without effort or intention, her mind went completely silent. It wasn’t relaxation. It wasn’t a fleeting calm. It was no-mind—a state of total stillness. There were no thoughts, no inner commentary. Just silence. Presence. Isness.
She had been listening to Osho for years by then, trying different meditation styles and cultivating presence. The experience was a culmination of all her efforts—yet it felt like grace, not achievement. Suddenly, she knew what the mystics had spoken of. Not as concept. Not as theory. As direct realization.
From that moment, something in her shifted. Psychology, as she had known it, fell away. Concepts became clutter. No-mind, emptiness, and silence became her path. And the world responded in kind.
Homage to The Masters
Some of Catherine’s deepest insights were echoed in the teachings of mystics she has long admired—some who walked the path before her, and others who simply whispered what she already knew.
🌀 Osho
Hours of listening. Countless meditations. Infinite silence beyond words.
A heart-to-heart resonance. Endless gratitude to the rebellious spirit
not fitting into the world—only fitting into oneself.
🕊️ Eckhart Tolle
She knew of Eckhart before ever meeting his teachings.
He appeared in a visionary dream:
a man walking across a book of wisdom, its golden pages glowing with light.
Words were born of the emptiness of the Now.
Though she wasn’t initially called, she enrolled in his training for advanced seekers during the pandemic.
His silent teachings of the present moment and his gentle presence resonated.
She spent hours with his podcasts, audiobooks, and video recordings—
a soul walking a similar path, offering simple truth through presence.
🕉️ Mooji
She fell into attunement with Master Mooji even before the online satsangs—
first through podcasts and videos, later through direct stillness.
She meditated on the words “white lightning,”
and poetry came like breath:
on dewdrops and sun motes, on sap as amrita,
on the crystalline energy of white light.
His teachings were gentle yet insistent—Christ Consciousness spoken through clarity.
His words pierced illusion with precision:
“That is the mask of ego—it is everyOne and noOne.”
🔥 Sadhguru
His esoteric depth called to her spirit.
His singing moved her to tears.
In his presence, the pages of the akashic records turned—remember!
Awareness bloomed in the infinitesimal: ants, leaves falling,
the simplicity of attention itself.
He brought joy in simply being.
He brought laughter with his quirky poems.
A Master of Masters.
No more need be said.
🌳 Tree Masters
In solitude and stillness, they shared their secrets.
No need for credentials. No need for concepts.
Just communion. Wordless wisdom.
Ongoing. Eternal.
Love is the door to openness.
~ A Mystic’s Vision