The Musical Called “My Life”
“If you look over the years, the styles have changed - the
clothes, the hair, the production, the approach to the songs. The icing to the
cake has changed flavors. But if you really look at the cake itself, it's
really the same.”
-John Oates
-John Oates
When I got out of bed today, I looked in the mirror and noticed
that my hair was a mess . . . sticking out in all directions! However, I
am very lucky in that all it takes to remedy this situation is to run my hands
through my hair, and voila . . . all better. I know it helps that I still
have a full head of hair, and that I keep it cut in a short, maintenance-free
style. That has always been my hair style requirement . . . easy to take
care of. If you had known me throughout the years, you might understand
why this is important.
For most of my childhood, as long as my mother was in charge of
caring for my hair, it was kept relatively short. You see, I had so much
hair she had trouble getting both hands around it to even put it into a
ponytail! As I got older, I grew my hair out until it was long enough to
nearly reach my waist. After all, I was a teen-ager in the 60s and 70s,
living in Southern California, and hair had to be long, right? Too bad I
wasn’t blond . . . but that’s a subject for another day.
Anyway . . . as I was saying . . . I had long, very thick, and
fortunately fairly easy-to-manage hair. I would wash it, spend a long
time combing it out, then braid it and hope it would be dry by morning.
With the advent of electric rollers, I could then take it out of the braid in
the morning, pull it into a ponytail on top of my head and put hot rollers in
it. When I was ready, all I had to do was brush it, put a clip in it or
pull it back with a scarf, and I was good to go . . . my idea of low-maintenance.
I thought it always looked good, but I would have friends tell me “Gee, if I
had your hair I would do so many fun things with it!” I would just smile
and think to myself, “Yeah, right. You have no idea how many things don’t
work with hair this thick.” Besides, I always felt a bit uncoordinated
with a blow-dryer and curling iron.
Over the years, I had my hair cut, styled, and eventually even had
it colored. Styles changed, and so did I. Some looks were
better for me than others, but still, the main goal was a style that looked
good and was easy to take care of. This also applied to the styles I
allowed my children to have . . . when I was in charge of their hair!
With two parents who were both blessed with lots of hair, my
children came into the world with a similar “problem.” Curly or straight,
they all had a LOT of hair. I did my best to style it, keep it cut, and
looking cute . . . but then they grew up. What is it about becoming a
teenager that makes boys want to grow their hair long, and girls wanting to go crazy
with whatever the latest fashion is? I will never understand it, but I
learned very early on that there are much worse things, so why waste energy
arguing over something that will most assuredly change. I admit I did cry
the first time I had to cut David’s blond curls off . . . and I have watched
with interest as Jonathan’s hair has begun to recede.
However, as the years have passed I have seen my boys go through
various phases of hair length, style, color, etc. I remember going to the
airport to pick up my son Andrew. As he walked toward me with his long
hair hanging down, I was momentarily confused about who I was picking up that
day, him or his sister! (I was scheduled to pick her up the next day)
On another occasion I was waiting in a parking lot for my oldest son,
Chris, to meet me. I looked across the
street and saw someone walking toward me and thought to myself “Who wears a hot
pink fuzzy hat in the middle of July?” Imagine my surprise when I found out it was my son,
who had dyed his hair a lovely shade of fuchsia!
Then there was the moment I actually felt pride in my son
Timothy’s long hair. He had it pulled back into a ponytail so that he
could voluntarily have it cut off to be donated to Locks of Love. I actually got a little
choked-up over it all.
The girls have been no different. Most parents can relate to
that “fun” moment when they discover that one of their children (in my case,
Angela) is so proud of their ability to use scissors that they come running to
show you how cute their little sister’s (again, in my case, Julia) hair
looks! Yep . . . 5:30 on a Saturday night, scrambling to find someone who
can fix it so that you can go to church the next day, and hope no one will
notice. It gets better . . .
Several years ago my daughter, Alyssa, informed me that she had
her brother, Jeremy, buzz her hair off. She said she would post pictures,
and I went in search of them with trepidation. I saw the pictures and I
breathed a sigh of relief when I observed that she still had hair about ½”
long. Then I thought, “Oh my, a girl should not look that good with a
buzzed head!” She gave me another chance to let go of my ideas about what
is and isn’t okay when it comes to hair . . . and I actually thought she looked
beautiful.
The latest “hair” fiasco in my house . . . my youngest daughter,
Amelia, decided to get Dreads! After my past experience with kids haircuts and styles, I just shrugged my
shoulders and asked her how she would keep her hair clean? She had done
her research, so there was nothing to worry about . . . and again, the
truth-of-the-matter is, she looks adorable. The style suits her laid-back
personality, and I have no doubt that her hair style will change many more
times over the years.
Mine has, and will likely continue to do so . . . at least as long
as I am lucky enough to have hair, and the style is low-maintenance, I will
remain, as Hillary Clinton has said, “. . . undaunted in my quest to amuse myself by
constantly changing my hair.”
So what song prompted all of this you ask . . . yep, Hair, from the American
Tribal Love-Rock musical of 1968!
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