In this episode, I bring visionary artist, creative catalyst + ritual arts instructor, Cat Shepard to the sanctuary for storytelling and cultural exchange! Together, we explore the sacred mysteries, answering the call from the Divine, reciprocity with Mother Earth, the honor of being a guest in cultural traditions from which we do not have a direct lineage and the power of creativity to liberate us from giving our power away or settling for less than we deserve. Cat Shepard is a creative force with over 40 years of experience as a creative catalyst serving in roles as project advisor, ceremony curator, and sacred spaceholder, land blessing ritualist, mystress of creativity, energy healing guide, visual artist, and facilitator of ancient wisdom. In the 1970s Cat became fascinated with the ritual arts and alternative healing arts. She was introduced to shamanism in the 1980s. Cat has studied, trained and has decades of practice with ecstatic trance postures, flower essences, plant medicine, reiki, kundalini yoga, visual + graphic arts and much more. Cat has committed her life to studying, learning, and practicing a sacred path of Creativity - in ritual, through nature, and with a deep trust of intuitive guidance. I had the honor of discovering Cat and her body of work 5 years ago as I asked the Divine for support with my own creative and spiritual activations. As 2022 unfolds, you can catch Cat launching the first phases of her legacy work with Ancient Echoes University; facilitating her innovative courses in a virtual setting; capturing the beauty and art in nature through the visual arts, photography, and the ritual arts; and sitting in circle with the ancients in the co-creative process of rites work in individual and group settings. As we take in this special and rare opportunity to sit with Cat, she invites us to hold these questions near and dear to our souls...How has exploring the creative mysteries with art, nature & ritual become a powerful tool for catalyzing healing & transformation? Why & how do the arts, rituals & nature affect us? What are the potential benefits of exploring the mysteries of creativity? To keep the conversation going with Cat and connect with her work, please email [email protected] or visit:  https://www.cshepardarts.com https://ancientechoesblog.wordpress.com https://www.facebook.com/mycreativemysteries https://www.pinterest.com/CShepardArts https://www.instagram.com/wyldcatart --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/sojourn-of-light/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/sojourn-of-light/support