Embracing Your Natural Hair

My hair in transition

    Your natural hair walk is about loving the hair that God gave you. It is not necessary to judge the women that still relax their hair. I see that a lot. Many women go natural and began attacking women that process their hair. My natural hair journey is not about that. My natural hair journey is about freedom. It's about my independence from chemicals. It is about being able to take care of my own hair. It is about loving the tightly curled tresses that sprout from my scalp. It is about embracing the hair that God gave me. It is about me not being concerned with a "kitchen."The kinks in the back can stay lol.

                                               

    Many of us do not even know what our hair type is like, because we have been getting perms since our childhood. When I consciously decided to go natural, I thought about Troy's, hair at the end of "Crooklyn". In the movie, she lost her mother and became the "woman" of the house, told to look after her little brother Joseph. Her hair was picked out in a neat afro with a small portion picked out from the rest, towards her face. I think that her hair helped to symbolize her maturity.

    Aunt Song's reaction to Troy and her mother's "beads and braids" was interesting. It was very obvious that she thought that straight hair was good hair. She even tells Troy, while pressing her hair, that she doesn't have "good hair" like her baby (Viola). This whole view highlighted the ending when Troy stood at the gate with her beautiful afro.

    I often watch movies that were made or based on the 70's when afros won over the heads of the majority of African Americans. That must have been pretty cool, but hot in the summer lol. It's cool to know that I am heading towards that journey. When I was in high school, I wore my natural hair in primarily 2 styles. The first style that I wore was combed-out curls. The second style consisted of my hot combed and wrapped tresses, hanging down with a part on the side (like Aaliyah). I was not aware of the many styles that were out. I remember when Lauryn Hill first entered the scene with the Fugees. I might have been 9 years old at the time, and I thought her hair styles were cool. But, I was not aware that it was a natural hair style. I found myself retracing my steps in a way.


   When I was little, I watched my older brother brush and style his hair after getting a haircut at the barber shop. It was that summer when Biggie's "One More Chance" dominated their airways. The warm
breeze felt good on our faces as we rode our bikes up and down the block. After taking out my braid extensions, I stared at my face in the bathroom mirror. My mind replayed my brother's motions when he styled his hair. I decided that I wanted to be able to spray water on my hair, comb it, and go. However, my grandmother did not think that was a good idea. I was sent to a salon where styles were more important than hair growth. The monkey wrench had been thrown into my natural hair plans. But, I am making up for this :-)

    The natural hair walk is about patience. It takes a while to find the right products and techniques for your hair. But it's worth more than gold when you do :-)

                          What Will My Peers Think of My Natural Hair?

     When I first decided to go natural, I was concerned about finding the right styles. I wondered what my friends and family would think, but almost everyone was supportive. The most interesting thing is that many of my associates of other races and ethnic backgrounds loved my hair styles. I think that is too cool. I think that is one of the things that is so beautiful Black hair. It is different and versatile. Many of us tend to stigmatize natural hair as unacceptable, but other races marvel at it.
    Your attitude about your natural hair is going to affect how you will be viewed. Be comfortable with your styles, even if you do not think they look that great lol. I experienced that with my two-strand twists. Your natural hair walk is not about whose hair looks better, but it is a statement. You are making the statement that , "Natural hair is beautiful". This does not mean that you are better than someone else. It means that you are embracing what God has given you, and it is alright :-)-
                                                          
                                                                                      God is good :-)
                                                                                      Signed,
                                                                                    1BlessedNatural