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Page 5 Winter 1990 - 91
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LETTERS Three
Points For Consideration Three
points: First, a simple suggestion to improve our competitions. It
should be easy to implement. Why don't we permit our esteemed judges
in the Senior National and Teams competitions to award more than one
medal in any category, or to award no medals in any category, at their
discretion? For instance one year there might be two golds, no silvers
and a bronze; the next year there might be one gold, one silver and
two bronzes. There might even be one of each. If you have comments on
this idea, please let Laura Green, championships coordinator, know.
Second, it may make sense not to distribute prizes and awards at the competitions in 1991 due to their cost and the fact that we would be recognizing the same stalwart folks for the third year in a row. If you have any ideas about awards or how we can recognize people adequately, please let me know. Third,
I've been to five European juggling festivals, most recently in
My
gut feeling is that the folks who have been left out of our festival
are those who might put off the decision to attend until the last
minute, pile into a vehicle with assorted friends and show up without
plans, reservations or a lot of spare cash. I personally think we
should go out of our way to include this big group of jugglers. If you
have ideas on how to do this, let the board of directors know and help
them to create ways to "Europeanize" our annual event. Dave
I
had an idea for a new column in the magazine that could be called:
"A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To Juggle..."
For
instance, last year at the Alexandria Zoo, there was a Halloween fund
raising event. Since it was at night, I planned on juggling my home-made
torches. During the show one of the wicks flew off of a torch and landed
by a bamboo fence in a pile of dry leaves. Needless to say, this
experience was the
I
never did find out what kind of beasts were on the other side of the
sixfoot tall fence. However, if the flaming wick had gone over, I
would have followed it. I would rather be known as the guy who died
trying to save the zoo than the one who burned it down!
James Lamkin -
(Editor's
Note: Any other contributions out
there for such a column?) Amateurs
Deserve An Audience, Too I
recently received a back issue of Juggler's World with an interview of
Dick Franco. He said, "If you can't juggle well, don't juggle in
front of people." Since juggling gives me and others enjoyment, I
disagree with his attitude.
Furthermore,
I propose that an IJA Amateur Showcase be added to the festival where
strictly amateurs (those who have never accepted money for juggling) can
perform. This event would give serious nonprofessional jugglers a
showcase and would give the festival participants a great event.
Juggling
As Happy Obsession I
have a problem. I juggle. This is not just a flash of the hands, but a
burning desire to toss things in the air. It started as a simple
challenge of keeping three things in the air. Now it's an obsession that
has become an integral part of my thought process.
I
can't help myself in the grocery story. The eggs and the apples call to
me, "Juggle us, juggle us!" I don't go to the hardware store
for parts, but to find things to juggle. My hands go wild with motion.
In the stores my kids act like they don't know me. My wife hid my
machete. She talked of leaving me when I looked at axes the other day.
The first thing I think of when I pick up a tool, ball, bat or fruit is
balance, space and spin. My cats avoid me at all cost.
There's
a reason for this madness. I juggle for the joy of it. There's a rhythm
in the rise and fall of ball or bat in a good juggle. The rhythm gives
way to peace and release from the everyday pressure and stress of the
world. Juggling involves the hands, eyes and mind in a flow of perfect
unity and cooperation.
If
the leaders of the world were locked up together until they learned to
juggle, they would find out that the perfect jug is not just a toss of a
ball. Just as peace is not a toss of bullets and human life. Juggling,
life and world peace require the coordination, cooperation and
communication of all parts in order to keep the flow from crashing to
the ground. Life's a jug. Life's a joy. Tony |
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