Maine Hooper Spotlight ~ Jazmin Jade

• Jazmine and I met at Maine Hoop Day a few years ago. I was mesmerized by her energy and spirit. She's a hooper that I have really enjoyed watching over the years. Hippy Go Lucky Hoops is honored to share Jazmin's story about how she left a life of drugs behind to find health and happiness...Jazmin gets candid right here on my blog- and it's our hopes to really empower everyone - not just hoopers - to realize you can always pick yourself up and more forward.

  

  
  

• Jazmin Jade's Story... In 2010, I was involved heavily in the drug scene and was going down the worst path a girl could choose to go down. I felt that I had nothing to live for really, no passion for ANYTHING except drinking beer, and doing pills. Lots of both of those things. During this time my boyfriend was getting worse. If I wanted to get better I had to move out of our sleazy studio apartment and get away from it all. I was ready to say goodbye to that life, and start a new one. My girl Taylor let me stay at her house for very cheap and she held my hand and took care of me while I was getting clean. I then took a step further and decided to move back home to Maine. I needed more freshness, new life, music, family, and learning how to love myself.
  

  Discovering the hoop....

  During the rough times of my life, I always had music- no matter what. That was my outlet, but when I was still constantly in a drug fog my mind was never clear. At Wanee Music Festival 2010, there was this beautiful girl spinning an LED hoop. I was watching her and my jaw was on the ground, and all I could say to myself was, " I want to do that, but I will never be that good....I can't do it...", and walked away. Later that night I saw another girl at the drum circle, explaining how she made her LED mini hoops and then continued to spin them for everyone. I started getting more involved and obsessed with music, and started realizing that pills and my drinking was not what I was meant to do and what I was born to do was somewhere CLOSE to that music I loved so much. I was so close. Jazmin's Journey Evolves....

  Since being back in Maine I have been teaching classes at community centers all around York County, kids events, business events, and in yoga/dance studios. After a short hiatus from teaching I started teaching again at 3 Degrees Fitness in Dover, NH. Class will be every Wednesday and It is geared toward an intermediate hoop tech and flow class level.
  

  

  During my time off from teaching I not only worked on my own flow and practice, but I co-founded the Disc Jam Hoop Tribe with my friend Tony who runs Disc Jam Music Festival. He had a vision of a bunch of hoop dancers on stage for the count down for a New Years Eve show, and we created this tribe. It turned into a huge thing, we had a performance show case, and got to share the stage with Dopapod for the countdown. It was amazing. The best night ever. Since then, we all have been working very hard as a tribe and preparing for Disc Jam Music Festival next month! Not only is there an amazing line up of music, but the tribe has a line up of flow workshops that will be going on there at the festival! We also just added 7 new members to our tribe, varying in performance styles from belly dance, to poi and of course, hoops!
  

  

  New Years Eve Performance
  Photo featured on hooping.org

  I've done a variety of performances and shows. My first time performing was at The Hooping Life Premier in Portland, ME, I was so nervous! I started hooping with Concord, NH's local favorite bands, Boogie On Alice, and Amorphous Band. I've also done a recent burlesque style performance. It was so empowering.

  

  

  

  
  

  At a recent performance at this year's Wanee Music Festival - I brought my quick wicks, attached them to my 27" poly pro, and spun fire where it all began for me. The drummers all turned towards me as soon as I lit up, and there were about 70 people at the drum circle. It was a whole new me. I was at the same place where I discovered flow, to the beautiful sounds of African drums, and I felt like I finally won. I threw away all of the bad, and unhealthy in my life, and this is me now. After my last wick went out and everyone was cheering, I got extremely emotional and was in tears. I just felt like I won, that is honestly the best way to explain that feeling. I won another chance of a happy life.
  

  
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   Hooping changed my life drastically. I became healthier, a dancer, more coordinated, and am constantly inspired and always willing to try new things with no anxiety, and no hesitation. This flow game is my therapy, for real. I have lost a total of 35 pounds since I started hooping! I noticed my waist getting smaller, and figured out that what I was doing with physically improving my body as well, and was inspired to go hard! I changed my diet, all organic, to no red meat, to no meat at all (just fish and veggies), and low amount of gluten. Recently I started to cut out dairy. I also started doing yoga, and going to the gym regularly to lift a little weights, all for my hooping and flow art, and It helps big time!
  
  
  
  
  
  

  

  Examples of Jazzy's hoop works of art.

  For More of Jazzy ~ Follow her performance Page on Facebook:
  
  https://www.facebook.com/JazzyHoopz42
  
  More Pages to "Like" on your way out~
  
  Disc Jam Flow Tribe:
  
  https://www.facebook.com/discjamhooptribe
  
  Hippy Go Lucky Hoops~
  
  https://www.facebook.com/hippygoluckyhoops