I'm proud to say that I have FINALLY mastered the art of hula hooping in my 30s--nearly two decades after I first picked one up. My aunt Nicki gifted me a purple and white striped hula hoop for my 10th birthday. Try as I might to swivel the thing around my hips, it would turn a couple times thanks to the initial momentum I created in a effort to start the hooping process AND THEN it would fall to the ground rocking back and forth. After many failed attempts, the thing started collecting dust in the "land of lost toys" otherwise known as our unfinished basement. Every now and then I'd dust it off and try again without any success.
Last summer my dear sister, Em, taught me the proper way to hula hoop at a family party. I thought it was a fluke when I was actually able to keep the thing up for minutes at a time. I chalked my success to luck.
Yesterday, I found myself wandering the aisles of Target aimlessly in an effort to find a "thank you" gift for a friend. That's when I saw the hula hoops and wondered if I still "had it." So, I sat my stuff down right then and there and armed myself with a hula hoop only to realize the aisle wasn't wide enough for such childish action. I sheepishly made my way to the main aisle, in search of more space, when I saw two seven year-old girls walking along and asked them if they wanted to join me in a hula hooping contest. The more the merrier, right?!?
Of course, they jumped at the chance. What seven year-old wouldn't? I'm happy to report I am the reigning Hula Hoop Queen at the Fort Union Target. I even got props from their mother for doing it in heels (on a side note, I normally don't wear heels to Target, but I just had a nice dinner with my padre and step-madre).
I wish I could take credit for my successes with the hoop, but I honestly think they are making hula hoops more user friendly these days. They seem to be weighted to stabilize the momentum. Regardless, it feels good to check that one off the list. I'm all about small wins these days, and I'm reminded that one should never give up. Who knows? Maybe I'll be able to conquer the piano next. :)
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