Hair Thoughts

There are many expectations of what an appropriate hairstyle should be for a Black woman. The times in which you were raised influence your thinking. When I was a little girl, the length and texture of your hair determined your hairstyle, not what you could purchase.
I have fond childhood memories of my Mom, Mama (maternal grandmother) or Auntie Pat doing my hair for special occasions. I've shared with co-workers the thrill of little Black girls wearing their hair "down" after Easter, only to have it back to the routine style after a day or two (if you were lucky). My hair timeline has been... getting it pressed... getting a relaxer... or getting freestyle braids. But this year, turning 50, I just wanted a break. Since having the braids over the pass 11 years, all of the relaxer had grown out of my hair. It was freeing. I did not want to get back into that 4-6 cycle. I felt pressure to have a "style". Whenever I searched the web, the "natural" styles were either very short or very long afros or braids of many beautiful designs. None of them seemed right for me. I purchased a "Chi", but couldn't get hair really straight. It yielded the same frustrations I remember from getting my hair pressed... barely sweat, or step out into the Houston humidity and be napped up again.

So today, after almost 9 months in hair limbo...I'm happy.

Guess who else is happy? He was quite surprised when I met him for lunch. I told him I was attending an inservice.