Everything in Moderation, Even Moderation

Michelle Stobart, left, paints Henry Ruben fingernails confetti nail polish in her home with Keith Ruben, partner in her home in Athens, Ohio. “I don’t believe in telling kids what they can’t have. Its just a color,” said Stobart. Photography by Sonya Paclob

Stobart smiles at her students progress in class.

by SONYA PACLOB
One might find chanting to be identified as unusual, but a yoga class harmonizing as one brings many people tranquility and stability within their lives. Inhale Yoga Studio owner and instructor Michelle Stobart, finds it invigorating to watch her students grow in the yoga lifestyle. For 15 years of practice, she can physically go beyond her limits, but obtaining  a stable relationship with her partner proves to be a challenge. “I’m really teaching myself when I speak to my class,” she said. She lives with her partner Keith Ruben, a painter and wrestling coach who are visited by Ruben’s three sons ever weekend. Balancing passion and relationships is battle everyday for even the most experienced. 

On 29 East Carpenter Street in Athens, Ohio, Inhale Yoga Studio opens in the evening for students in front of a busy road. 

Beginning of every New Year, the classes always have new faces to the yoga program. Michelle Stobart speaks to her students before their meditation.

Stobart straitens Allison Maloney’s back for proper posture in meditation. “When you change your physical strength, you are able to change the mind and spirit,” said Stobart.

After class, she checks on paper work at the studio. 

Stobart and Ruben have been together for 2 years and has been living together since September. “It is hard to balance our passion and our relationship,” she said.

After breakfast, the boys from left to right; Wide Ruben, 9, Slylis, 5, and Henry, 3, brush their teeth properly.

Stobart and Ruben share a moment with each other in the kitchen. “ I want to be a good partner and my partner and my family. Everything in moderation, even moderation,” she said.