Hello

I’m Monica—an artist and lifelong question-asker with a background in psychology, life coaching, caregiving, and human connection.

​

Since 2017, I’ve worked directly with two incredible individuals with profound autism. What started as a part-time college job quickly became a life-changing journey that I still feel honored to be part of today. That role introduced me to the deep fulfillment that comes from helping others live with dignity, joy, and support.

​

Over the years, I also worked in behind-the-scenes roles that gave me a broader view of systems and people. I believed wholeheartedly that if you worked hard, stayed kind, and genuinely cared, it would always be enough.

​

But in early 2024, life took a profound turn—both personally and professionally. A wave of changes forced me to reexamine my identity, my health, and the future I thought I was building.

​

In the stillness that followed, I found myself reflecting deeply on the past few years. In 2020, my mother-in-law—who had been living with us—passed away. Then, in early 2024, we lost my father-in-law as well. Between those two heartbreaking losses, I was diagnosed with narcolepsy—an incurable neurological condition that reshaped how I experienced daily life. Each event carried its own grief, but together, they created an unexpected pause—an ache and emptiness that made space for deeper questions. I wasn’t just mourning the people I had lost; I was grieving the version of life I had imagined.

​

As a result, I began asking bigger questions:

​

• Who am I beyond a title or schedule?

• What brings me real joy and energy?

• What can I create that feels honest and healing?

​

It was during this period of reflection that I earned my certification in life coaching. Though I haven’t formally coached clients yet, I carry that training—and the desire to help others move toward healing and clarity—into everything I do. As someone naturally introverted, I’ve found fulfillment in holding space for others, gently guiding them through moments of transition and growth.

​

While exploring what coaching might look like for me, a memory from my early childhood came flooding back. At around two years old, I fell into a pond at a family wedding. I don’t remember the fall—only the feeling of being wrapped in a blanket, safe in my father’s arms. I was told a stranger had saved me. In my heart, I’ve always imagined it was an angel who nudged her, whispering, “not yet.”

​

That moment inspired me to draw. I picked up a pencil—something I’d never done before—to try to draw what I saw in my mind. I started with a faceless angel, then drew a single eye. 

 

That one moment shifted everything.

​

I became captivated by what eyes hold—memory, emotion, unspoken truths. They aren’t just windows to the soul; they’re portals into questions we’re only beginning to understand.

​

Since then, art has become a lifeline. A mirror. A way to explore everything I once tried to explain with logic alone. I’m drawn to symbolic, surreal pieces that ask big, human questions:

​

• What shapes our beliefs, our truth, our identities?

• How do we make peace with what’s gone—and still grow forward?

• What is real in a world full of perception and contradiction?

​

My art reflects these questions with gentleness, curiosity, and deep respect for each person’s unfolding story and journey.

​

Today, I’m building a life that feels more aligned—through art, creativity, compassion and reflection. My hope is to offer others what I’ve learned to offer myself: the courage to evolve, the space to reflect, and the tools to begin again.