Monday, June 23, 2008

in the beginning...

...there was nappy hair....

...coarse, dense, tightly coiled, springy, rebellious, unruly nappy hair....

...countless hours of sitting between my mother's knees while she fought to tame my thick, spongy mane....fire-hot pressing combs from the stove that burned my forehead and ears when i jumped from the heat and wouldn't sit still....the smell of singed hair and smoke swirled in the air....freshly done wave nouveau curls that made me think i was isht (remember the not-so-wet, drip-drip cousin of the carefree curl? PLEASE forgive me - it was the '80s)....my first perm....and chemical burns from scratching....creamy crack touch ups every 4-6 weeks mixed in with occasional individual braid extensions and corn rows....being tortured and held hostage at the beauty shop all day while the stylist tended to 4 other heads in addition to my own....do-it-yourself crotched and interlocked styles.....more dark n' lovely fire cream home applications....glued-in pieces....sewn-in weaves....pinned-in wigs....and other unnatural wonders....

i've been in a love-hate relationship with my hair for a very long time....

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