Hooping Goals

Drop Update: So far today, I have dropped the hoop 6 times. In exciting news, on my final drop, I kept the hoop going around my lower legs for just a few moments--a leg hooping first for me! Hooray!

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The hooping journey has a lot of milestones. Some of them are visible to others, and some of them take place inside of you. This entry is like the itinerary for a vacation. It has the highlights that I know about, places I plan on visiting. What it can't contain is the surprises along the way, the discoveries I make, the turns I never expected to take that lead to someplace wonderful that I've never heard of.

Hoop in public: I live in a tiny apartment, and it can be difficult to hoop indoors, as the scuff marks on my ceiling can attest! But I've avoided hooping in the parking lot behind my building, in parks, etc, because I don't want anyone to watch me while I hoop. I hope that as I grow in skill and confidence, as well as acceptance of my body, to be able to hoop in public without worrying what anyone thinks of me.

Take hooping on a vacation with me: This is kind of an extension of hooping in public. I'd like to get a travel hoop (one that can be broken down and then reassembled) to take with me on a trip, and I'd like to hoop in some special and unique locations, ideally with a friend there to take my picture! From another perspective, I'd like for hooping to be such an integral part of my life that it's natural to take it with me wherever I go.

Record myself hooping: Just as I've been shy about hooping in public, I've been camera-shy too. But as SaFire says, "document, even if you don't ever plan to share". I want to record my progress so that I can look at it, so that I can go back and celebrate my personal victories, and yes, if I ever decide I want to, so that I can share with others.

Complete a 30 Day Hooping Challenge: This is a challenge hosted by Hooping.org where you commit to hoop for 30 minutes a day for 30 consecutive days, and to post about it on your blog after each session. You can also check in on the Hooping.org Facebook page for community support and sometimes even prizes. It's something I've always meant to do, and this journey is the perfect time to turn it into something I have done.

Make my own hoop: There's all kinds of hoops out there. Glittery, collapsible, folding, LED, fire. All different sizes and weights. I imagine that once I've been hooping for awhile I'll probably develop my own preferences, and it'll be a great time to create exactly the right hoop for me. Plus, who knows, I may decide hoop making is an awful lot of fun!

Get a special hooping outfit: This one is pure fun. Who doesn't love to play dress up? It also reflects the new person I'm becoming on my hooping journey.

Go to a hooping festival/retreat/jam: There's all kinds of great hooping related events out there, and I can't wait to go to some!

Make hooping friends: Hopefully this will be a result of the last one--meeting great new people who love to hoop too.

Hoop with fire: This is the big one, my dream for years now. I love fire, I love flow arts, and I can't wait to finally combine the two. When I've gained enough skill and confidence as a hooper, I'll finally be able to try it with fire.

Who knows what else I'll find along the way? I'll have to journey on to find out!