Locks of Love Donation

As many of you will know, I grow my hair quite long, and then cut it short to donate it to Locks of Love, a non-profit organization that makes wigs for children with long-term hair loss. You can read more about them here. I've been doing this since I was about 14, and the last several times, I have included my children in the project. If my count is correct, this is my seventh time donating my hair to Locks of Love. I only have strong memories of doing it five times before this, but I'm fairly sure there was a sixth, so I'm thinking this is my seventh. I am completely sure that this is my third time doing it with my children, as those have been the much more awesome and memorable times. My goal in having the children be a part of the process is to help them to develop empathy for people who have no hair (or are facing any other illness or difficulty) and to help them see that small, everyday decisions we make can have a positive impact on the world. I mean, it's just hair, and it doesn't really matter, but we can actually use insignificant things it to be kind to someone. I'd like my children to remember that.

This is what my hair looked like most days. I do not actually enjoy having long hair, and having it in plaits meant that I could largely pretend that I didn't. 

This is what it looked like on the rare occasions that I put it in a ponytail and allowed it to be curly - directing said curls into a semblance of order by twisting them with my fingers after washing my hair. My reaction to my decision to wear it like this instead of in plaits is extremely predictable:

1 minute in: "Wow, this looks amazing! I'm so lucky to have such pretty hair!"

3 minutes in: "Ugh, it almost fell into my food/work//toothpaste/face."

5 minutes in: "What was I thinking?"

The rest of the day: "This is so not worth it. It's so big and long and everywhere!"

Hence, this is not a common look for me when it's this long. Anything up to about 5 or 6 inches shorter than this is okay, but this is too long, and is only allowed because it makes for a better Locks of Love donation.

For the week before the donation, I straightened my hair so that it would be smooth and manageable, so that the children could "help get it ready" by brushing it, clipping it up, etc. The main goal was for them to actually experience what the hair that we were going to donate was like, because given that my hair is always in plaits at work, they don't really know that it's long and thick and perfect for wigs. But now they do.

I'm noticing now that I apparently couldn't be bothered changing out of my pajama pants for this photo. Oh well. The point is the hair, not the pants. Notice how my hair is past the small of my back - how did it get so long?!?

The management team at my current job decided that it would be better if the children themselves didn't actually cut my hair, as there have been issues with some of these children cutting their own or others' hair, and we want to be consistent in our messages that cutting hair is only for hairdressers. Luckily, one of our current mums is a hairdresser, and she generously agreed to come and cut my hair at Whare Kea. The children were mesmerized by the whole process - I wish I could show you pictures of their entranced faces, but of course I don't have permission to do that. But you can trust me that they were beautifully invested in the whole thing, and were so touchingly concerned for the children with no hair and eager to give them mine, it really warmed my heart.

As a bonus, I got my first professional haircut since I was about 14. She left it a bit longer than I was expecting, but I knew it would be shorter once I washed it and it curled up, so it worked out well.

Washed and curly... here it is! I noticed that it ended up a bit longer in the front than in the back (I think because it was parted differently when it was cut), so I trimmed it myself, as I like it to be even.

Now it's the same length all around. I don't do layers, as that will make future donations less ideal for wigs.

Sorry for the lower quality of this picture, but this is what it looks like from the back. 

I enjoy my hair a lot more when it's short, although my ideal is just a few inches longer than this, because there are a few strands around my neck that won't stay in a ponytail. In just a month or two it will be ponytail ready, and that is my favourite length, I think.

I will now return to my foolfproof plan of not cutting, trimming, or doing anything at all to my hair for the next two to three years, and allow my hair-crazy scalp to get to work producing another donation.