The first step to learning to juggle is to learn the one-ball throw and catch. One part of the learning concerns the throw, where one learns to throw to a regular height. The other part of the learning concerns the catch. It’s about controlling one’s natural reflex to move one’s hand to where the ball is.

Learning to catch includes learning to let the ball fall. It’s only when it falls that there is no reflex.

This reflex is a natural reaction, one that gives us the impression that we are able to avoid errors and the sense of failing. We’ve learned to hold on to the things we grab, because letting them fall comes with the risk of breaking something.

It’s a view into our habit of controlling what is happening, and how our desire to control is a desire to reduce the risk of failure. It’s a window into our fear of failing or making errors.

Learning to let the ball fall helps us let go of that fear. Once we’ve become at ease with letting the ball fall, the attention used to prevent the ball from falling becomes available to observe what it is in our throw that leads to the ball falling.

We’ve become willing and able to learn from our errors.