Learning to Juggle at the Park

A man in my local park juggles every Sunday afternoon near the fountain. One day I worked up the courage to ask him if he'd teach me. He handed me three beanbags and said, "First, you have to learn to drop them."

I dropped them a lot. For six weeks, every Sunday, I practiced beside him at the fountain, throwing beanbags in the air and chasing them across the grass. Kids laughed at me. He laughed at me. I laughed at me.

Then, one afternoon in June, I kept all three in the air for ten throws in a row. He threw his arms up and shouted "Yes!" so loud that the people at the fountain turned around and clapped.

I can juggle for about a minute now. I practice in my kitchen while dinner cooks. Last week I taught my nephew how to drop them.