Hair, Long Beautiful Hair

In my mind’s eye I see myself as tall and svelte (hey, a girl can dream, can’t she?) with long flowing tresses.  (stop snickering!)

I have to admit my hair is my one point of vanity … it is longish, thick, wavy, and healthy.  But it was not always thus - when I was in grade school, Grandma Riner once accused me of having a horse’s tail attached to my head.  Isn’t it amazing what a decent conditioner can do?

Throughout high school and college I wore my hair very short – short and sassy like me.  But then I met a nice young man who liked long hair (on women) so now, after more than 30 years together, I still keep my hair longer for him.  (Oh, the things we women do to please our men.  Like stiletto heels.  Really?!?) 

I’m not a vain person so when a few gray hairs cropped up, I welcomed them.  My niece Joanna kept trying to convince me that I needed to color my hair and get rid of the grays.  “You’ll feel so much better about yourself,” said she.  “Hey,” I replied, “I feel just fine about myself, thanks.  Besides, I worked hard for those grays … I Earned them!”  My two older sisters, who had been coloring their own hair for years, didn’t like the fact that their little sister looked older than them (or so they told me).  But, I held firm and my hair got grayer.

Then in 2007 that beloved niece lost her battle with breast cancer, a mere 6 days before what would have been her 33^rd birthday.  To honor her, my sister Ammy and I drove down to southern Florida to spend Joanna’s birthday with her mom, JoAnn.  We went out for breakfast at one of Joanna’s favorite restaurants then enjoyed a homemade Spa Day, pampering ourselves with mani-pedis and massages.

JoAnn and Ammy had long tried to convince me to get rid of my gray, so when they started in on me this time, I caved in … again, to honor my dear niece.  At first, though, they tried to turn me blonde.  Yikes!  Fortunately, it didn’t take because I have neither the coloring nor the Attitude to be a Blonde.  Next came a nice soft brown with reddish tints and wouldn’t you know … I loved it!  So now, nearly five years later, I’m still covering those grays.   

Who knew that Lady Clairol and I would become such good friends?

Back to the long hair … I always wondered why women of a Certain Age (about MY age, as a matter of fact) suddenly went from having long hair to short.  Was there some Unwritten Rule no one told me about that declares “older” women can’t have long hair?  If so, my husband would be disappointed.

Well, now that I am of a “Certain Age” myself, I have finally discovered the terrible truth and I’ll let you in on the secret: long hair + hot flashes?  Not a good combination.   Taking a B Complex and Black Cohosh and using strategically placed deodorant at night have helped a lot, but one of these days I’m going to come home with short hair again.  And when I do, my good husband will just have to understand.