And she lived nappily ever after
“Does it itch?”
No dumbass. Instead of replying I silently shook my head no, confused as to why people assumed that my scalp must be itchy just because my hair is natural.
“It sure looks like it does….”
And the comments just keep rolling… You’d think she’d take a hint by now to stop talking.
“It looks dry. Why did you cut your hair off in the first place? Were you going through some angry black woman phase?”
There goes those damn questions again. Some people just don’t understand why a girl would choose to have natural hair. I remember the day of my big chop, a girl I had befriended took me to a barbershop. I had hair down to my shoulders and only 6 months of new growth. I remember how nervous I was sitting down in the barber chair, I thought I was going to chicken out and not go through with it. My friend instructed the barber to cut all the perm off. I cried when it was over. It was naturally a shock to my system to see my shoulder length hair gone and laying at my feet. When we got back to the dorms I washed my hair and rubbed leave-in conditioner throughout the ends. I had maybe 2 inches of hair left on my head. It curled so beautiful and I knew at the moment I would never go back to straightening it ever again. That day was November 19, 2005.
This all took place my first semester of college. My friend was a girl in my dormitory with the flyest fro I had ever seen. She had bad ass blue streaks all through it. The first time I saw her I held my breath and watched in amazement as she walked past me. I envied how her hair bounced with each step she took. She saved me from myself while I was still transitioning. I had permed my hair for the last time May of 2005 and I was debating whether or not to straighten it again when I met her. Transitioning while being a broke college student was difficult and I didnt have the means or patience to fight with my hair daily. Half the time I ended up going to class looking a hot mess. My friend was kind enough to braid it for me and tell me the ins and outs of what products I should use and tricks on how to style my natural yet permed hair.
“For a minute I thought you had turned lesbian when you came home looking like Eve that Thanksgiving..”
Sigh… Lesbian? Angry woman? My sister hasn’t stopped talking yet. It really makes me sad that she reacts negatively to natural hair. I just want her and others with her mindset to realize that weave and relaxers ain’t for everybody. I’m not proving anything or making any kind of statement with my curly coif. I simply refuse to conform to the ideology that there’s only one standard of beauty. I love my hair. I look in the mirror and I see myself for who I am everyday, even when it looks a hot mess. Nah, it aint itchy, and nah I’m not out to prove my blackness, I’m just doing me, that’s all.
