HAIR AND AGE

Today in facebook, Ric's statuts made me think of something. He asked why men let their hair grow as they get older while women cut it short. Not in my case, both men and women.

Here's the explantion I wrote to him.

Not all women cut their hair short when they grow up, meaning adults, I guess it's the other way. And I remembered my story with hair. Ever since I was born my mother cultivated in me a long and luscious hair. But at the age of four, she got possessed by a weird spirit, and she decided to cut it short, horrible! I looked like a boy. I hated it, and I remember I cried when I saw my ebony locks being swept away by the hairdresser's assistant. I vowed I would never do that to my daughter and I didn't.

Then, during grade school my hair went up and down according to my mother's fancy. There's a nasty pic with me in jeans, my new green, eyeglasses, and my hair I guess shorter than my brother's. I looked so much like a boy.

Then, from junior high to.... university I got hold of my hair. I wore it long. Not so long, but long enough, just below the shoulders. I would take care of it dutifully and lovingly, convinced as I was that it was my only beauty. Again during univeristy, I got fed up with it getting trapped in the chairs of each classroom and I decided to have a drastic change. I had it cut to the nape. Then it went to the shoulders and up again. In one of those ups and downs I met my daughter's father and I had it cut. Then we had my daughter, and I had it really short in order to look after her. I had no time for both, my hair and my daughter, besides trying to order my thoughts to write some thesis. I got used to short hair and whenever I tried to grow it longer I had forgotten how to take care of it. It was too much work, I didn't know what to do with it, and I ended having it cut once and again.

Then the terrible news came. Ame's father was dating someone else. I threw him out of the house, and then I had a new cut. But I decided that short hair is simply comfortable and easy to take care of, definitely NOT sexy. I started to look for a change. First I had it dyed. I had bleached streaks which took six hours to be completed. The hairdressers ended so tired I guess they closed the shop for the rest of the day. I liked it, but I decided it was not worth keeping. Then, while the roots turned black again, I decided to dye it a dark colour, a reddish tone. It suited me fine, but it wasn't me. Then, when only the ends were reddish, I had them cut and my hair has been long since then. Long and hanging. It doesn't have the spark it used to. However, I like it so much better than when it was short, I wonder why I had it short.

But, mine is not the only case I know. As a matter of fact, my grandmas illustrate different cases. My grandmother Elodia, who wore her beautiful hair long most of her youth, had it cut short when I met her. There are many pictures of her with long hair and rolls to the sides, but I don't remember her with long hair. Although it was always very black, until maybe seventy years old.

My other grandmother, Luz, had her hair long all her life. I wonder why all my aunts, mother included, have their hair short. Since the old pictures she had taken, her hair hang below the waist. I remember her old and tender, towel drying her hair with care and even tenderness and then braiding it to the very end to later pin it on the back nape.

My daughter loves her hair long, although, once, out of pure boredom she took a pair of scissors and cut it shoulder length. however she's letting it grow again.

I guess most women like their hair long and when they cut it, it's to mark the end of a stage in their lives or because they need a change.