Now that the semester is over, my family and I decided to spend a weekend in Mazamitla, a magical town near Guadalajara known for its cabins and excellent climate. I have always enjoyed coming here. There are many open spaces, trees, and nature in every direction. It is definitely a place where I can relax and connect with myself in an incredible way.

On the first day we arrived, we decided to explore the town and find a place to eat. After passing by several businesses, I suggested going to a crafts market that we had visited in the past when we came here. We walked to the place, and all the items being sold were made of wood. I had been wanting to buy a larger wooden chest for a while since the one I had was getting small. So, I decided to look for one and found the following one for only $11 dollars.

Passing by several shops, I saw that they were selling various wooden toys. Out of nowhere, I remembered that Yo-yos existed and that I used to love them as a child. I quickly asked in a store if they had Yo-yos, and a very friendly guy showed me one, which I bought without hesitation. It had been a long time since I played with one, and I even forgot how to use it. I ended up asking my dad several things, so throughout this post, I hope to refresh your memory or teach you the basics of how to use one.

The first thing I asked him was which finger the string goes on. The Yo-yo string is tied to the middle finger of the hand. To wind the Yo-yo string into a cylinder, you have to first pass the string over your finger and then under it about 3 times. After that, you let go of your finger and continue winding until you reach the end. At first, I saw that my dad would first wind the string around his finger, spin it around, and then let go. I had doubts because it didn't seem logical to me. Later, he explained to me that he did this because if you want to wind the string without this trick, you won't be able to because the string won't wind into the cylinder and will just spin.

After that, the easiest thing to do is to give the Yo-yo a little momentum to make it go down and then make a movement upward with your hand to make it return to you. The curious thing is that I saw my dad playing with the Yo-yo in a peculiar way. He had his hand pointing upwards, and then he would push the Yo-yo down over his fingers. I tried to replicate what he was doing, but I didn't know how until he explained it to me. I thought I had to push the Yo-yo down with my hand pointing upwards and pull it back up the same way. He later explained that, no, you push the Yo-yo down with your hand pointing upwards, but as soon as you push it, you invert the position of your hand downwards to be able to catch the Yo-yo again.

I also learned that Yo-yos are tied using a string that is tied at both ends, and to put it inside the Yo-yo, they split the string in half, insert it into the Yo-yo, and then start twisting it to tighten it so that it doesn't come out. Also, if you are given a Yo-yo with a string without a space to put your finger, it is very simple. You just have to estimate the size of your finger and make a slip knot so that you can adjust it.

And voila, you can start practicing with your Yo-yo. My dad also mentioned some tricks that used to be done, such as the "dog" where you let the Yo-yo walk on the floor as if you were walking a dog, and the pendulum, which is more difficult, where you use the Yo-yo string to end up with a pendulum-like motion. When I was little, the best Yo-yos were from the brand Duncan.

I hope you enjoyed this anecdote about how to remember how to use a Yo-yo. Thank you very much for reading :)