“I Still Have A Dream” (Wash Day)

 Curly Girl "Childhood" Secret"

As a child, my Saturday evenings would be the time my mother would use to do my hair. The wash day is a bonding opportunity and a time to get to know each other in another light. The story of hair day as a child is not warm and fuzzy but rather, can I say, painful from start to finish, but I felt like a princess once she completed the process. Needless to say I had a ton of hair. As an adult who does her own hair I understand how she felt back in the day.

The Process: Like any other little girl, I had to stand on a chair at the sink while my mother proceeded to pour lukewarm  water on my hair.  We didn’t have the shampoo tube like we do now; I wish we did because each shampoo session ended up with soap running in my eyes.  Then, the process of detangling would begin. The 1980’s and 90’s hair product companies did not produce a detangling product to help combat this problem. After years of “fun” wash days I talked my mother into getting me a perm so that we could both be at peace and have more time to bond in a less strenuous way. What I discovered was that the perm was more painful than the shampoo that got in my eyes and the detangling process…. My old school hair dresser left my perm in for 45 minutes if not more to make sure my hair was all the way straight. That process left chemical burns at all over my scalp…  

I had a dream about being free of chemical burns on my scalp. That dream became a reality once I realized that I held the power in my own hands. The power of choice is key to one's journey to finding purpose and truth that will unlock the door of self awareness and greatness. These attributes are more valuable than money. After 7 years of being natural, I have a dream that more women in my circle will decide to go natural so they can begin the journey of self discovery.