Stranger Things

My Child’s Future Rested on the Results of the Next MRI

In life, it’s all about your perspective

Amy Strommer
The Memoirist
Published in
14 min readOct 23, 2023

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back of girl’s head with messy hair — medium story boost
Photo by Amy Strommer

A couple of times a year, the dreaded email arrived.

Not the email asking for parent volunteers for field trips or math circle. Something worse.

“NO! Lice is goin’ around again,” said Brigit, who was in 4th grade. “I don’t want it.”

“Me neither. What would I do about my hair? I’m not cutting my hair.” Alana, a 7th grader, wore a baseball cap over her long, wavy, thick hair that, even after brushing, displayed tangles and snarls. If anyone were going to get lice, it would be her.

So far so good

I checked her hair each day, and so far, all had been well.

Saturday morning arrived, and it was time for a hair check. Alana sat on a bar stool next to our granite counter. I brushed her hair, and my heart beat faster when I pulled something out. I paused as I looked at the thing in my hand.

“What is it, Mom? Is it lice? Do I have lice? I can’t cut my hair! What are we gonna do?” said Alana, her eyes darting around the room and her breath quickening.

“Let me put this in a Ziplock. It might just be dandruff. I don’t know. Just hold…

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Amy Strommer
The Memoirist

Amy Strommer writes about motherhood, life, and other 3 a.m. topics. Though humor is her love language, sometimes a serious piece will land on the page.