A different kind of juggling

So, I’ve really been enjoying juggling – it’s really a fun thing for me, and it’s an opportunity for constant improvement, which I really like.

After getting really excited about it yesterday, I did some research online and I found a number of tutorials and clubs that teach you different moves.

I’ve been trying to juggle three balls, but it hasn’t been going that great. I think it’s too early for me, actually. I’ve been working on my technique, and I realize that I have a lot of coordination issues — especially with my left hand.

Even more than I originally thought.

So, I am backing off and taking it a little easier. And I’m back to juggling two balls for as long as I can keep them in the air.

That is actually the challenge I’m trying to solve, more than getting three balls going at the same time – it’s just keeping my attention focused on the balls in the air, however many there are.

I am working with coordinating my movements, so that my left and right sides are more independent from each other. And I’m working on keeping going. So far, I can go for about a minute or so, before I lose focus. I’m working on that.

Looking at all the juggling tutorials and videos online, the real focus seems to be on mastering complicated movements and patterns with more and more balls, clubs, knives, or other objects. But for some of us, the biggest challenge is just keeping two balls in the air at the same time for an extended period of time.

Let alone all the fancy schmancy moves.

And I remember again why I took up this kind of juggling — not to join the circus, not to do anything particularly elaborate… but rather to work on my focus, my emotional restraint, and my ability to pick myself up when I drop the ball and keep going, regardless. It gives me something to do that occupies my attention, improves my coordination, and has plenty of opportunity for improvement over time.

Those are the things that my particular “juggling for dummies” brings to me. And frankly, I’m a lot more interested in those, than performing tricks and amazing an audience. For me, the real benefits lie in not having to perform any tricks to get by in my life, and  amazing myself (and those who know me and what I’m up against) with how much better I can cope, compared with how things used to be.

If everything progresses as it has been, my next trick will be no trick at all.