Let’s Talk Hair

Photograph by Kate Holliday, Rebelle Films

Oh!  You probably think this is going to be the same conversation that goes on when black women talk about “hair.”  Should you straighten it or wear it natural?  Should it be curly or wavy?  Extensions or wigs?  Weaves?  Twists or braids?  Women have so many options and can choose any of these styles on any given day.

The hair I am talking about is the problem facing a lot of women of any race who are experiencing hair loss as they get older.  So we don’t have the head of hair we used to have or even the one we wished we had.  We can try to hide it but like a man with a bad comb over you only draw more attention to it.  God Bless my maternal grandfather.  He was bald as a cue ball and all of the men on my mother’s side are either partially or fully bald having chosen to shave their heads in light of the approaching baldness.  Darn if it is not making the rounds on the female side of the family as well.

Photograph by Kate Holliday, Rebelle Films

It was a little disheartening at first when I realized my hair was thinning.  I remember looking my husband and bursting into tears blubbering “I am losing my hair.”  He realized I was having a moment and I quickly got over it.  Wigs, hats, scarves, extensions and other means of trying to hide it was not an option for me.  There are women, children, men – all types of people losing their hair to serious illness and other reasons.  Losing it due to living long enough to get old and being healthy while doing so is not a big deal – it should be embraced as part of the journey!  Hair doesn’t define us nor does the lack of it make us more or less the person that we have always been.  If you feel it does you need only look inside to see that you are still the same person.  We are still unique, fabulous and fun!  So don’t look with envy at those women who still have luxurious, long hair, curly flowing tresses or larger afros.  Look in the mirror and love the hair you have – it’s part of what makes you the YOU that you are now.  If only I could convince my stylist that with less hair she should charge me accordingly then . . . wish me luck with that!