James

by Seb O.

One rainy day, on the deck of an ordinary house off the Colorado river, James’ grandmother was teaching him and his cousins to do yo-yo tricks. His grandma has been doing yo-yo for a long time, which makes her an experienced yo-yo teacher. James (Jimmy) said that “Yeah, it was hard to learn yo-yo.”

Six months later, in a busy Period 1 class, James focuses more on his assignment then the interview as I ask about his experience with the yo-yo. Based on the information received during the interview, and by watching Jimmy “walk the dog” as one of his tricks, I could tell that he was now an expert on yo-yos and is ready to teach others the tricks.

As the interview progressed, I asked Jimmy more questions. His favorite trick? Jimmy’s favorite trick is “around the world.” His opinion on light-up yo-yos was “boring, like Dracula, because Dracula sleeps all day.” His first yo-yo was a blue/green mix, but his favorite yo-yo color is blue. His grandma, who taught him to to do the tricks, has been doing yo-yo since she was a little kid.

James has clearly mastered the art of the yo-yo and is now ready to pass on the tradition of the small, round toy that we call “yo-yos.”