HAIR

PRACTICE: Identify one of your chronic insecurities.

YES, I have written about it before. My hair. IT IS DIFFERENT THIS TIME! For the last six months I have been liberated from the bondage of a chronic insecurity. In April 2019, I wrote about how hair controls men and women alike and how I wish I had more of it which meant that hair rented a small yet significant room in my head. In December 2020, I cleaned out that room, shut and locked the door.

Was the dismantling of the room easy? Absolutely not! I had discussed the removal of hair from my head many times with friends, family and my hairstylist but had resisted following through. So, when I walked into the hairstylist’s shop with a wig in hand and said, “Today is the day, this goes,” there wasn’t any hesitation on her part. She picked up the clippers and got busy. Thirty minutes later my new bold and fierce look was completed.

Although my mind was set, as I drove to the shop and even as I sat in the chair, there remained a degree of trepidation (evidenced by the wig in hand). As the whiz of the clipper signaled a swatch of hair being removed from the back of my head, I relaxed. There was no turning back, the first real step had been taken. Until that moment I could have changed my mind.

I was surprised by the feel of the cool air on my freshly shaven head. It was as if new life was being breathed into me. When I was handed the mirror, I was pleasantly surprised by what I saw, the female version of two of my brothers. I smiled and the hairstylist breathed a sigh of relief, exclaiming, “You look awesome.”

What life lessons did I learn from this experience? Change requires the release of something. Change is refreshing. Change, even well thought out change, is scary. No amount of preparation can totally prepare you for the actual outcome. Others will respond to your change in various ways. Some will immediately validate the change and be excited for you. Others will find it hard to believe that you made a change but eventually accept and support it. A few will not notice at all. And a few will notice, comment and ask about your plans to return to the old you. I learned all of this from my husband, son, brother, nieces, and sister’s responses.

Regardless of the reactions of others, my life without hair has been lighter. What insecurity can you release to make your life lighter?

2 Cor.5:17

PONDER THIS THOUGHT--- Change is to life what yeast is to bread.