I’ve Had Gray Hair Since I Was Two
Yes, I mean that title literally.
Cat Sticker For Anonymity.
I believe I've always lost the gene lottery. While my mother had to be one of the most beautiful woman one could lay eyes upon, it was quite the opposite for me.
Wherever my eyes could see, imperfections had been laid down. I had an extremely crooked nose, the largest hands seen on a girl, and an abnormal amount of body hair (Surpassing both of my brothers). Even my favorite feature, my dimples, are an imperfection if you look at the science behind it. But that wasn’t the worst part. What scared me most were my gray hair.
I was two when my mother first spotted a gray hair camouflaged against my locks. Panicked, she took me to the doctor’s office, who made it a spectacle, calling all his interns to host a show. A two-year-old having gray hair, seemed like a miracle indeed. But it was far from a miraculous experience.
As I grew older, my gray hair grew along with me. Consequently, I found myself scrolling through YouTube all day trying to type in 'How to get rid of gray hair' for hours, but was left hopeless. The onions burned my eyes and the vinegar lead to an increase in my grays.
It wasn't that I hated my gray hair. It was that everyone else hated it.
It was as if the teachers thought it part of their job to always point out how half my head was gray, supplementing me remedies in front of the class. It was that my classmates thought of it as a good bullying tactic. Disappointingly enough, it was that even my relatives made me and my hair the joke of the week at every family gathering.
I was 14.
I was sick of people telling me I was the ugliest in my friend group or talking on top of me every chance they got.
After numerous occasions of begging, At 16, I found myself at the hair salon getting my hair dyed. It wasn’t a long-term solution, but for now It’d at least get me through my day.
After a few sessions, I was faced with the consequences everyone dreads. My hair started falling out at an extreme rate as I kept up with my colouring and now not only did I have gray roots, rather bald spots all along my head which previously used to hold thick, luscious hair.
These were my hair. They held me every day. They protected me. But I couldn't protect them.
It’s been 3 years now since I’ve decided to give my hair a chance and been on the journey to revive them. The onions and vinegar shall stay in kitchen.
Everyone’s hair is going to turn gray one day anyway, maybe then I won’t feel isolated. But for now one day at a time, I’ll shall get better.
I got the inspiration to share this after reading an outstanding piece written by Natalie Forrest titled ‘Growing Out My Gray Hair’. Do give it a read!
