The hoop is a important symbol to many Native American tribes and for some the hoop dance is a healing dance. The hoop can be used to represent many things but essentially the hoop symbolizes the never-ending circle of life. It is a dance that can amaze and delight you as in Brian Hammill's performance below. Dancers incorporate between one and 30 or more hoops in the dance, which are used to create both static and dynamic shapes, or formations, representing various animals, symbols, and storytelling elements. The solo dancers use their numerous hoops to represent eagles, butterflies, snakes, etc. Hands are used far more than hips; hoops do not swing around bodies but are moved carefully from formation to formation. Native American hoop dancers live throughout North America. A few even live elsewhere. Hoop dancers vary in the way they see their hoops and their dances. Some might think of hoops as sacred. Others might see them simply as dancing accessories. Dancers (
Your Happiness Factor: celebrating happiness, prosperity, hearth and home with coaching and writing from Wendy Mason Smith