All my life, I have had non-standard hair. Other people had ‘normal’ hair, but my curly head just was not
I’m behind. I’ve been working to hard and I’m not sure how
I’m going to get caught up.
I know the working parents…and which parent isn’t working?…knows
what I mean. I am neglecting my daughter.
Every time I see her I tell her to comb her hair. It’s starting
to get curly.
Curly is another word for tangly.
Let’s be clear, her blonde hair is not curly like my hair, it
has some wave to it now.
My hair, I know, is non-standard. My daughter is still in
the range of normal. But there is a new level of tangles that need some
attention. I’ve been trying a few different products, but it seems that it
needs to be blow-dried after her evening bath.
With my curly hair, I read about people who blow-dry their
hair. It seems that people use blow driers to dry and straighten hair.
This is way too much work for me. My weird hair doesn’t seem
to get dry that way. I figured people with normal hair could blow-dry their
hair in minutes, but my hair is not that lucky.
I got the short end of the stick.
So when I tried to dry my little girl’s hair, I was
surprised that it seemed to be taking a long time. She hated it, and the hair
was barely drier than when we’d begun. I was mad at myself for not seeing it
through, but no one was having a good time. I gave up.
The next morning, though, her hair was far smoother.
whaddaya know?
It was enough.
That was not what I expected. I thought that it would be a
lot harder. I’d always assumed it had to be bone dry to make a difference.
Her hair responded. My little bit mattered. I thought I had
failed. But I’d done just enough.
For her, for this, that was enough.
Maybe that perfectionist pressure I’ve been putting on my
self for other things is not required.
Maybe the tangles aren’t as stubborn as I’ve assumed. What
if it were easier?