hi, I’m Titi, pronounced like two cups of tea.

I was born and raised in and around the Milwaukee area of Wisconsin by my two immigrant parents, with my roots stemming from Laos and Vietnam. I remember serving tea to my vietnamese grandparents around tet, the vietnamese lunar new year, when I was about 4 years old. before I started school, I was very close to my grandparents and that was when I was closest to my culture and heritage, being relatively fluent and having english as a third language. when I began school, what was a main part of who I was began to be stripped away so I could excel and live the American dream that both of my parents escaped their homeland amidst war for.

fast forward to middle school, I was introduced to yoga daily at 6am on PBS by Priscilla Patrick, an elder woman in a purple leotard sharing different poses in 15 minute segments. unknowingly, this was when my spiritual journey began. my practice intensified in undergrad, where I originally went to fulfill a dream that was not mine. so of course, right before I entered my senior year of undergrad in northern Wisconsin, I chose to shift gears and become a teacher with a bachelor’s in science. it’s as if the universe was ushering me to begin the path of fulfilling my true destiny.

I taught for a few years in the south and in the midwest, while at the same time pursuing a graduate degree in early childhood education and attaining a 200hr certification in yoga (with no intention of ever teaching yoga). after my certification, I began to share yoga with my preschool students who fell under the umbrella of poverty and found that it had tremendous impact on them. because of what I experienced in my classroom, I chose to do research on mindfulness in the classroom to wrap up my graduate degree, and that was what propelled me deeper into the world of meditation and yoga. being an educator was stressful on many levels, as I held space for young children of poverty, to briefly holding an administrative role for young children of affluent background. yoga and meditating with tea was my safe place.

becoming pregnant with my first son, I chose to leave the corporate world of traditional education and let the Universe lead me to what’s next, as I wanted to be a present mother. after my son was born, I began to teach yoga “full-time,” which led me to getting many other certifications, including a 300hr yoga certification, and birth my very own tea meditation class.

from here, tea meditation grew in popularity. and as it grew, I felt imposterous. the only thing to do to relieve that feeling was to do research on it. that was when I discovered I was far from being an imposter, and that I’ve been practicing something that I didn’t know was a practice for hundreds of years.

though my practice may not be traditional, it highlights, educates, and appreciates. all at the same time, reconnecting me with my roots and reminding me who I am. so, here we are. together. sharing stories. sharing knowledge. sharing and appreciating culture and tea together. what a beautiful blessing.

when I am not sharing tea, I’m usually around my ethereal home with my growing little family.

until we see each other…