August 13th was definitely my biggest day of 2011.
In the morning, I led a hoop workshop, Finding Flow, for seven delightful hoopers at the Ephrata Performing Arts Center. I loved teaching my first hoop workshop in the US.
Before the hoopers turned up, my cousin Chris and his family appeared at the theatre. They had driven in from Indianapolis for a mini-reunion. It was a surprise for me that everyone managed to hide. Mom was so on top of keeping me in the dark, that she and Tod prepared a huge pot of lentil soup for that night’s supper when she fully intended for us all to eat out.
After the hoop workshop, we had a picnic in the park. Four of my childhood friends who I hadn’t seen in over 30 years drove in from NEPA to visit. It was shocking to realise how much we haven’t changed. Circumstances have changed us, but these women are the same girls I remember. We all hooped and played together until a thunderstorm broke up the party. What a fun afternoon full of smiles and silliness.
Jenn and I prepared a surprise of our own for the collected audience of hoopers, friends and family. Since we were girls, we’ve played and performed together in so many ways – on stage, in choirs, as teachers, games leaders, writers and all sorts of shared creative endeavors. Now that we are both hoop dancers, it seemed natural that we would create a hoop performance for the entertainment.
Later in the day, we had dinner out. Thirteen of us – a family of mixed everything – filled an entire private room. The waiter gamely answered all our questions about the yak steak. We gamely tried to explain the relationships of everyone at the table. After dinner we went home to Mom’s and all donned birthday hats for a group celebration of everyone’s birthday.
