Random Disney quote, I know but maybe it isn't so random after all. If you know me, you know I have a love/hate relationship with my hair.Hair means so much while truly doing so little for us. Here's my hairstory (get it....HIStory.....HAIRstory.....LOL. Sorry I couldn't resist)
My hair is naturally curly and thick. Little me always wore pigtails in ball rubberbands. For those that don't know ball rubberbands were literally big colored plastic gumball looking things at both ends of a rubberband. Being that doing my hair was so time consuming I had to get it done at night and wear a scarf to bed so not to ruin my 'do. Talk about pain and uncomfort, but that's the price I had to pay to look like a civilized little girl for school.
As a teenager my sister began to use the pressing comb to straighten my hair. Looking back it's quite barbaric! The process of placing a metal esque comb on the stove til there was a bit of smoke coming from it (that's how you knew it was good and hot!) then placing it in your hair makes me laugh now, but back then it sometimes made me cry. There were plenty of casualties to this process.....those were usually my forehead. I chalked it up to the price I had to pay for manageable hair.
Then like a knight in shiny armor, relaxers came into my life. I became addicted to what Chris Rock would call "creamy crack". Relaxers made my hair manageable and uber straight. Like all things it came with a price. Ask any woman who has ever had a relaxer and I guarantee you they'll tell you one basic rule: do NOT scratch your head prior to a relaxer. Why? Cause it'll burn like hell that's why! Yep, needless to say I sucked up a burning scalp cause I wanted my hair bone straight. Who cares about the scabs on my scalp....my hair was cute.
As I got older I became a little more respectful of my hair. I completely weened myself off that creamy crack and I've gone completely natural, now before you applaud me I have a confession to make. I'm not completely off the straightening process. Every week I straighten my hair and every week before I do I complain about the process! Air dry hair, grease scalp, separate hair into sections, apply silicone, flat iron, curling iron, repeat. It takes about an hour, but I love my hair straight.
The purpose of this rant is for us, women and men alike, to ask who defines your beauty. I can almost guarantee it's not solely you. Let's work on that. I made it to adulthood relatively "normal" and unscathed, but little boys and girls now are exposed to so much more. Let's lead by example and show our children beauty is something that must come from within. And that leads me to the angel dust: I've been told you can be anti-makeup because you're naturally pretty and my response is thank you, but I'm naturally pretty because I'm natural :))
my straightening tools
