Comment by Traci "CircularPraise" Bonney on July 27, 2010 at 6:45am

Congratulations, Beth! That was an excellent interview. Your answers were very encouraging to me that my approach to the hoop has been a solid one. Thanks for sharing. :)

Comment by MyProgressInSpirals on December 10, 2010 at 2:32pm

Wow. I'm sorry to comment at length but I so connected to your description of flow. Not because I'm a writer and your metaphor is perfect for that reason, but also because I've been writing about similarities between hooping flow and personal growth (for me specifically, my journey in Al Anon). Anyway, I just wanted to share one of my favorite passages from your interview along with what I wrote that made me feel so strongly connected to what you are saying.

I love this part:

"Again, if I compare my dance to writing, then I can look at each revolution around my waist as a word. Much of what we say consists of very simple words: the, a, an, of, to. Big words have no meaning or context unless they fit effortlessly into a sentence. So my dance consists very much of these rather simple words, simple revolutions executed thoughtfully, with feeling and the occasional trick or fancy words punctuates my flow. After a while, these revolutions add up to sentences and then the sentences become paragraphs and the paragraphs add up to chapters and eventually I have written a little story. My dance really becomes a story, an improvised conversation between me and my hoop."

Here is what I wrote along those same lines:

"I believe recovery – and personal growth for that matter – is not linear. We learn and re-learn. At first new ways of thinking do not come naturally – in the same way that learning new hooping moves can feel awkward and uncomfortable. In the program I feel I am building awarenesses and slowly putting them into a larger context and over time my default reactions and responses become healthier – they become part of me. I’ve been learning basic movements and hooping tricks but I understand the real art is in putting them all together and forming graceful transitions that eventually meld into effortless, natural flow. With practice, the individual movements that at first felt uncomfortable and incited feelings of frustration and self doubt, start to feel like my own. I don’t have to think about them or force it. It requires believing in my own potential and creativity to experiment with the moves and discover how they fit together in a continuous flow. I am pleasantly surprised when I follow the hoop’s natural path and see what happens; being open to infinite possibilities rather than transfixed on achieving specific outcomes."

Comment by beth lavinder on December 10, 2010 at 6:37pm

Thank you so much for sharing with me. I also very much resonate with your words. In particular, this sentence got me: " With practice, the individual movements that at first felt uncomfortable and incited feelings of frustration and self doubt, start to feel like my own." Isn't this true of so many things in life? We have to be comfortable being uncomfortable before we can settle in and discover who we are in a new rhythm, a new approach. You are a gifted writer and i hope you will continue to share your discoveries and thoughts. 

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