Hair

Who is this child?? I have certainly never met her....

"Jan" has been begging me for years to straighten her hair. Everyday I listen as she tugs, rips & yanks her long beautiful locks into submission. All the while I (part of the curling iron club) sit back begging her..."EMBRACE YOUR CURLS!! I KNOW WOMEN WHO WOULD KILL TO HAVE YOUR HAIR. Namely...me.

Step out of yourself for just a second, Ran D. If there are women who would pay well over $100. to CURL their hair, wouldn't your baby do the same for STRAIGHT? Well, thankfully I didn't have to pay quite so much.

My friend K is constantly using her straightening iron. Before we run errands I sit on her bed & watch her glide the iron over each strand making it shiny and smooth. She is forever insisting that I should buy a CERAMIC hair iron for Jan and "Marsha" and eventually "Cindy". "Yeah, okay" I would say to myself (EMBRACE, EMBRACE!!)

This week I finally broke down & purchased the hair iron that K swears by (only $25.). For 3 days it sat in my bathroom staring at me. Mocking me! "Give up, I have won!"...it seemed to scream. I never mentioned it to the girls for fear I might have to use it. And then last night the news broke. Such excitement! (from them, not me) Such joy! (HUMPH!!) Such rapture! (Blah!!) This morning the girls awoke early, ate & dressed quickly (I've never seen them move so fast) and we finally broke that bad boy out.

I began with Marsha, who has her mothers "unruly, can't decide between wavy & straight, always looks like she just rolled out of bed", hair. I was careful to mimic K, dividing each section of hair neatly. I ironed the underneath peices before moving to the top, and I was very careful to flip the last bit under so not to look like a wet dog. Simple & beautiful... Marsha's hair was complete!

NEXT!! Oh god, fear, a lump in my throat, a knot in the pit of my stomach. Why am I doing this to her stunningly beautiful hair? Jan was full of questions...."How long will my hair stay this way? "Will it fly into my face? "Are you going to cut the longer strands to make it even? NO!! Oh lord, what am I doing? I thought. Relax, just keep moving....divide, glide, flip...divide, glide, flip. And then we were finished. It took a while, but finally my baby, who has had a mass of curls since that first little strand broke through, had smooth, sleek hair. UGH. I thought. Why? Why? Why? Then I saw why....There stood my sweet girl, staring into the mirror, beaming from ear to ear. How could I have denied her this pleasure?

Jan is still absolutely stunning. Her hair had nothing to do with that. And no, we will not become slaves to the iron, breaking it out on daily basis before walking out into the world. However, Jan has now been given a choice, curly or straight, red or blonde, long or short, bang or part. These things are important at 9. They are important at 29. And I feel like I just offered her the world. (Thanks K).

WOW!

I was reading in my room last night when "Peter" came in to tell me something about someone...I can't quite recall. Such a serious expression he had on his face. I took one look at him & broke into laughter! An odd form of shock must have overtaken me in that moment. Here is my son, my middle boy, constantly laughing, always smiling, and forever cracking jokes or pulling stunts to make those around him happy (or shocked, he really doesn't care which) Charming Peter, coming to tell his mommy something terribly important & I am laughing hysterically...why? Because for the first time ever I realize he is the spitting image of his father!!

Allow me to elaborate...people have been insisting for years that Peter looks just like his daddy. Truth be told I simply thought everyone was insane! I mean, honestly, he looks NOTHING like Al, he is a Kemmerly, through & through. "No" I would say shaking my head. "He looks like my side of the family, just like my side."

Here is my problem. I tend to look at one's personality & shift their physical features to meet that image. This, obviously, is what happened with my sweet Peter. He ACTS just like a Kemmerly. I mean really people....that sense of humor and natural ability to be the center of attention is a gene he could only have inherited from MY side of the family (wink). Spend a little time at my grandma's house during the holidays and you will see what I mean. It could be compared to walking into a hen house. The laughter is nonstop and the decibel level WOW!!!! It is a wonder we weren't all deaf by the age of two.

Back to my shock....here I sit, staring at Peter, is chin, his lips, his ears. Oh yes, he is his father's son. The only difference physically is the shape of his head (round), and the build of his body (mine). So now I suppose I must admit that all these children look like my dear husband....well, save for "Jan" & "Cindy", who look discernibly like their mother (and act like me too I might add). At least Jan is built like Al (Thank heaven for small miracles! ).

Love to all. ~Ran D.