Accepting My Graying Hair

During COVID-19, John and I were very isolated. We only ventured out to the grocery store and drugstore. I think we survived rather well and made good use of Zooming with the grandkids and learning how to FaceTime. They were always very patient with me and gave me instructions when I needed them – even when I didn’t realize I needed them.

Growing Out My Natural Hair

One thing that I did early in 2021, during the height of the pandemic, was decide to discontinue coloring my hair. Since I never saw anyone and we were all wearing masks, what good was it doing? I’ve never colored my hair professionally so it wasn’t a matter of money—it was just a matter of why should I continue the process?

Gradually, my hair started to grow out, but it was still difficult to see the gray. I should say it was difficult to see the gray until I got my hair cut very short. Now you can definitely see the gray…or should I say white? At this point, I’m not too picky about how I describe my hair.

I also forget I’ve let it go natural until I see an old friend I haven’t talked to in a while. Our minister greeted me at church saying, “Welcome!”, as if he was speaking to a stranger. Boy, was he embarrassed when I introduced myself to him.

Showing the Grandkids

Since I don’t see our grandkids every day or every week, I tried to give them a heads up about my hair status without making it sound as though I made a bad decision. The granddaughters closed their eyes as I walked into the room. I took my place at the table and said, “Surprise!”

“I think your hair looks good.” The affirmation statement was nice but when I caught them looking at my hair, I could tell it was a little shocking.

“Grandma, your hair doesn’t look that bad.” Hearing this made me laugh. There are so many degrees in the spectrum of badness. I pondered which point on the spectrum she was referring to.

“Maybe you could tease your hair to make it look thicker and spread the color around.” Upon returning home, they teased away until we all realized there is no covering up the gray, let alone the thinning nature of this grandma’s hair. We all had another great laugh.

Making the Best of the Situation

The granddaughters tried their best to make things better for me but then soon realized I didn’t have any problem with my hair color—perhaps the thinness—but not the color. Once they realized my level of acceptance, they reassured me that they liked my independence and willingness to take a risk and be natural.

I always learn from my grandkids, but with this hairy experience, I learned even more. I learned my grandkids want to please me—they want me to feel good about myself and will do anything they can to build me up.

I did tell them I was still going to have a money jar for dying my hair. Now, however, I was going to give them the money and not give it to my hairdresser. They all loved the idea! They also requested if there’s a future lock down with the Delta variant, I can’t color my hair pink. I agreed.