What's with your hair ANYway?

In November 2007 I was finally ready to cut off my chemically straightened hair to wear my own, God-given curls and coils. People still wonder what on earth I was thinking, afterall, black girls simply do not go cutting off 8 inches of their hair! Our hair doesn't grow quite as fast as other races so the length we do acquire is cherished.

For some reason I cherish my 4 inches far more than I ever did the 8. Maybe because it's true to my heritage, I don't get the same confused looks I got with the 8 now that I got from Mexican men. Maybe they thought I was Hispanic because, with long, straight black hair I probably did confuse people. In fact Babe was convinced one of my parents was Puerto Rican. Nope, my immediate family members are all African American. Today I doubt I'd get the same inquiries.

Before I decided to go natural I think I hid "behind" my hair. I've always been a big girl and rarely did I go short, maybe my hair was a safety net? Whatever it may have been, the veil has been lifted and I've felt vibrant and confident ever since. Who knew it was all in a short, natural hair-do?

Since the "big chop" as we say in natural-speak, I have worn a TWA (teeny weeny afro) with the curl defined with gel and sometimes an all-out 'fro. I love the looks I get. Some are confused, others seem to genuinely like it when they compliment me. I love looking different than most black women. We all know I can grow hair and wear it straight and long, but how fun could it be to go against the grain and be different. Not that I'm the first to wear natural hair, but different for ME.

Maybe I'm drawn to the rebellion that natural hair can be. Why it's rebelling to wear my hair the way God "meant" for me to wear it is beyond me, but I do feel a powerful sense of pride with my coiled hair framing my face. A sense of pride I didn't have before November. Maybe it's just the simple fact that I am putting myself out there in my most natural form and I like what I see: beautiful, proud, confident and yes, phenomenal. A phenomenal, proud black woman...yep, that's me.