This month's challenge is less flow, more thought. The challenge is to write about how hooping (or flow arts in general) has changed your life.

Here's my story:

How hooping saved my life (or at least saved my car.)

Two years ago this month, a guy with a gun tried to jack my car. I was stopped at a stop sign at night with the door unlocked and he opened the door and told me to get out of the car. I hesitated and then saw headlights in my rearview. He took a step away from my car and I gunned the accelerator and got away.

What does this have to do with hooping? Hooping has taught me to be in the moment, to be aware of what is going on around me. To get difficult moves like the vortex and shoulder hooping, you really have to pay attention to what your body is doing and where the hoop is. You really have to be in the moment. This will also help keep you from getting hit in the face with the hoop. After getting nailed a few times, I got good at paying attention to where the hoop is when it’s near my face. J

For the first 36 years of my life I pretty much existed on autopilot. I let life move me around and just tried to adjust. Taking control of the hoop has actually helped me take control of my life. If you want the hoop to keep going, you have to push it the right way. You have to be an active participant. You have to learn to take control of the hoop to keep the planes and transition the hoop from one place to another.

I believe that my practice with the hoop increased my awareness of myself and my environment and helped me see that I can control situations by my actions. If I hadn’t started hooping, I don’t think I would have had the presence of mind to notice his hesitation and take advantage of that to get away. I also couldn’t just let him take my car with my pretty sparkle hoop in the back. You know, not a single police officer asked me about that hoop. Funny. So you see, hooping really did save my car (and maybe my life, too.)

Prize: One roll each of gaffer and deco tape in the winner's choice of colors

Raffle entries are due by October 31st, midnight, Hoop City time.

**** Please start all raffle entries with "Challenge Completed." ****