Things wax and wane. We have times where our interests may feel front, center, and all-consuming, and times when they fade into an obscure corner of our mind. I have found yo-yo to be something easy to keep up with (at least these past 18 years or so). I make it a point to play every day, knowing that I’m not always at my most motivated or creative. But the beauty of yo-yo is that you don’t have to give it your all for it to be meaningful. A few moments to throw some catch with yourself is restorative in its own way.
Part of what I like about the OP’s message is that it doesn’t have to be center stage all the time in order for it to maintain value or a place in your heart. That said, to me, there is a value in maintaining it as a daily ritual, and I can’t imagine voluntarily ceasing to play.
It’s a bit funny, I read this post back when it was first posted in 2013 because that’s when I was first starting to learn yoyo and lurk around the forum. I too stopped yoyoing for like five years when life got busy. Now I’ve got other bigger hobbies, but I’m back lurking the same forums hoping to pick it up again.
Sometimes things aren’t supposed to be an all consuming passion and fit better as a comfortable relaxing hobby in a busy world.
Guess that what I’m trying to say is that if you put it down and stop feeling that spark of joy yoyos bring, it might not be forever. Things can come back around after you throw them away, after all that’s kinda how yoyos work.
Happened to me many times, except when I first started, there was no YouTube, YYE, Instagram etc. I completely stopped due to waning interest after the 90s yoyo fad died (and me just starting high school). Wouldn’t be until 2010 when I’d rediscover it. Of course between them and now I’ve come and gone. My interest in filming tricks has fallen off the wayside and I haven’t learned anything new in a long time. I do still carry a yoyo (or 2) on hand just because I never know when I may just want to give it a spin.
I’ve reached the point that yoyo is there waiting for me when I need it. Sometimes as something to take my mind off of a rough situation or I see some random person playing with one in the wild that makes me wish I had mine with me at that moment. The hobby is literally like the object itself. It comes, it goes, and it comes back again.
It’s interesting to compare people’s responses in this thread to their recent activity on the forum to see if they stuck to their word on never losing their passion.
I don’t think I will truly stop caring about playing with yoyos. However learning a new trick, going to contests, buying new releases, of course. Sometimes life just happens and hobbies take a major sideline until you revisit them.
What I noticed is that the more you get involved, the more you get inspired, the more people you start to know, the more event you start to go, the more yoyo you start to buy ) and have more and more fun.
I have been always a sort of “home player” also cause my geographic position back when I was living in Italy, I never stopped play from when I started but after being in the italian community, the italian forum closed (I didn’t knew how to speak in english) and for me became hard to take a plane frequently to go to nationals/meetings (as I was living in a island called Sardinia) so I start just to play home usually one/two hours after dinner every day for myself/by myself.
Recently I found this forum (it was November/December if I remember well) and it literally bring even further my passion, I start to write and visit daily, I seen some people liked my tricks so I start to make my videos and open an instagram only for that, the forum and instagram connect me to even more people, I go to the meetings in London now all the time, I will start to compete, I got a sponsor, I bought so many new yoyos after literally years without buy anything ( ) and the fun I am having is absolutely great!
I think be in the community and be active help to drive the passion and if life get really busy I am sure it’s ok to put the yoyo down a bit and come back later, the community will still be here (and also probably so many new yoyos ).
I just think about that player sponsored by UNPRLD that had to stand by the team and his playing cause the military service, pretty sure when he will finish it and he is ready to come back, every member of this team and the community will be happy to have him back.
The yoyo community in general is the most welcoming I have ever experienced.
And anyway if one day the passion will fade completely away than it has been a great adventure and you will have the memories to have been part of that, nothing wrong about it.
) and have more and more fun.