Hello!! It’s been a hot minute! The winter and early spring in Arizona was well spent. Allow me to do a quick recap of the important things; as of April I have completed my 300 hour Yoga Teacher Training (YTT) in Tucson, Arizona through Radiant Spirit Yoga. Officially making me a 500 hour Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT). It was an amazing course that focused on the many philosophies of yoga and practices beyond asana, the physical movement that is associated with yoga.

The setting was intimate with four students, including myself, and two teachers. Being the youngest in the course was an opportunity and honor to learn from all five wise women. They each inspired me, held me, and showed me how to relight my inner fire.I hope to create similar sacred spaces in upcoming classes, workshops, and community in general.

During my yoga teacher training, I was informed by my corporate job that they will be letting me go at the end of June. Only a few weeks after my 30th birthday - what a gift! I won’t lie - it is a bit scary. However, I am not afraid of being scared. I have come to accept that despite not having a plan in hand, I do have a map in my heart. My spirit calls for being creative, to connect, to love and heal others. Quite frankly, I am not going to be able to fulfill those higher callings to the extent that I need to while on my current trajectory. 

As of July, I’ll be all in with my art and yoga. It will be a challenge, for sure, since both are hobbies that I have casually dabbled in for many years. Going forward it will be my mindset that will be one of my greatest assets.

For the next couple of months I will be in Colorado! I am so excited to also start this chapter of my life NOT in the Arizona heat. If you’d like to connect, you can catch me teaching or making art between Colorado Springs and Dillon, Colorado!

In my last newsletter, if you recall, I was making little canvas boards. Currently I have a shoebox full of them totalling to about fifty. Once I am officially out of my corporate job I’d like to challenge myself to paint one a day - maybe with a landscape or an abstract! My goal is to use them as drafts for creating bigger paintings in the studio later this year.

Summer Special for Pet Portraits!!

• 12x16” portraits for $250*
  • * standard shipping is included unless you want to pay for overnight or express delivery
• $75 due as a non-refundable down payment, and $175 due at completion prior to shipping. 
• Estimate of a 2-3 week turnaround time 
• Offer ends July 31st - meaning a deposit has to be submitted & confirmed by then.
• Please reach out via email listed below in my contact information & deposits can be made via Venmo @Tatum-OBrien-1

Nearly completed commissioned portrait of Lewis by Tate. Acrylic on canvas.

I am currently available in the evenings for private sessions online or in person if you are in the Colorado Springs area. Starting in July, in person classes will also be available to those near or in Dillon, Colorado and online group sessions will begin. In my July newsletter I will have a schedule for group classes both online and in person. Below is a list of class I currently teach with a quick definition. Currently my private classes* are going for $45 an hour as I begin to establish myself.

My Offerings

Vinyasa -  Enjoy a physical practice that progresses through a variety of asana/poses to build strength, mobility, and flexibility. All bodies are welcome to this class! Whether you are new to yoga or not, exploration and self compassion are highly encouraged in my classes. Yoga is the process of unifying the mind and body, so do anticipate a little bit of breathwork or meditation to be sprinkled in. However this class is geared to have the most movement in it. 

Restorative - A class that is taught completely on the floor! Participants can expect deep relaxation of the mind and release of tension within the body. The class begins with breathwork to ground ourselves in the moment before moving into asana/poses. Restorative yoga uses props to support the body in order to hold fewer poses for longer periods of time. This practice helps balance the nervous system by creating a space for the body to be held safely in rest. Make sure to bring your cozy socks! If you are taking this class online, don’t worry if you don’t have yoga props! Household items like blankets, pillows, towels, etc are perfect substitutes!

Yoga Nidra -  A guided meditation which takes the participant through a series of prompts to activate delta brain waves. This process eases the body and mind into a state of wakeful rest; allowing the participant to enter a deep healing space to work with the subconscious self. This practice helps reduce stress, anxiety, depression, chronic pain, and increase/improve overall physical health, sleep, self confidence, and memory. At the end participants can expect a sound bath to help clear their energies and integrate the practice. 

Thai Yoga - group sessions not available - only available in person - $60 an hour or  A gentle practice consisting of assisted asana/poses with a light massage over clothing. This practice is meant to clear blockages in your energetic body, and nurture your physical body.

Pranayama - enjoy as its own practice in a half hour long class or as an add on for $10 - Pranyama or the yogic practice of intentional breathwork has enormous benefits by balancing the nervous system; improves sleep, digestion, respiratory function, overall well being and decreases stress, anxiety, depression, high blood pressure, and cravings. This practice is great for any beginner or expert practitioner, and can be adapted to any environment you’re in! Many of my classes do have pranayama sprinkled in, but I highly recommend 

Sound Bath - add on to an in person class for $10 - Enjoy the sounds of singing bowls during the end of a practice. This practice is completely passive, as you enjoy the effects that the different frequencies have on you and your senses. However I recommend this for in person classes only, as the purity of the sound does not always carry through computer speakers.

Ametuer photo taken by Tate at Stratton Open Space in Colorado Springs, CO

Astrology is something I have always dabbled in, because it offers a lens of perspective. A few years ago I learned about Saturn’s Return. This is referring to the fact that it takes about 29 years for Saturn the planet to literally return to the place it was in its orbit during your birth.

They say you start to feel the return a few years prior, and even after passing through the threshold. It is a period of coming into alignment with yourself, accepting flaws, quirks, attitudes, and taking accountability. Perhaps it even feels like self confrontation, at least it has for me. It’s shedding the last tendrils of adolescence and accepting the mantle of adulthood.

It honestly makes a lot of sense. Our brains are not fully developed until we are about 25 years old. As we approach the later half of the 20’s, we are only starting to use the ‘real’ brain. Of course we feel confronted, challenged, and even a bit concerned on what to do next.

This month I am turning thirty and I am being let go from my corporate job. Saturn really said, “Here let me clear the path for you.”, if that isn’t a nudge from the universe to change, then I don’t know what would be.

Over the last couple of months I have lost people who had impacted my life; one had lived a long life of nearly one hundred, and the other passed far too soon. Both beautiful beings had lives that were beyond full. Each took many turns and followed various paths over their respective years. `

Upon reflection, I am left thinking - what kind of life would I want to live if I saw a hundred years or if I were to suddenly pass on the morrow. In this moment, and in this breath, who am I and is this who I want to be? When will I allow myself to fully express feelings and thoughts in my art and movement? When will I make time to connect with nature? Where will I settle into a community and plant deep roots? What should I do or make my purpose in this life to be? How will I live this life?

 For years I have dreamed of pursuing my passions, but I never actually dreamed of what that transition would look like for me. Now that I am at this metaphorical precipice, I feel hesitation... but if not now, then when?

The time we have in one lifetime is very finite. These answers are not meant to be rushed as I cross the threshold of my Saturn’s Return. However, I must be ready to answer them soon - or gamble losing opportunities to the winds of change.

This reflective piece doesn’t really have an end, as this is truly a new beginning for me.

What are your thoughts on Saturn’s Return or following a life path? Feel free to share via email with me.