Keeping It Even

I just got 9 inches cut off my hair. I went into the salon with a picture of a cut and highlights. When I left, my hair was much shorter than I anticipated, but I liked it. Besides, hair grows.

I have no anxiety whatsoever when I get my hair done. I always look forward to the experience and have a nice time talking to my stylist. Sometimes I talk about the traumas of my boys. Sometimes I’ll tell of my daughter’s exploits. One of the stories I told her this time was how I learned to cut hair. Here is the full story:

It was summer 1985. I was in Washington DC for a summer church leadership conference. Sara was cutting a girl’s hair in the corner dorm room. I was super interested. So I went in and pulled up a chair. 

She chatted and clipped as girl after girl came in for a trim. I asked her to teach me. She showed me how to section the front of a girl’s hair and then cut the hair evenly from side to side and front to back. Bangs are never shorter than your eyebrows. The secret is to cut even lines and keep things even. Cut long hair in a straight line horizontal to the ground. When cutting layers, cut section by section, pulling the hair out from the head and snipping evenly from the head. 

Even. Section by section. But the real secret is evenness…keep it even!

After that summer, I cut lots of guys’ hair. Wavy hair was the easiest. Stick straight hair was the most challenging. 

I cut my mom’s hair. She always says I am the only one who can do her hair. She has been to many stylists over the years. But I always fix it up afterward. She usually goes too long between cuts and then claims that she can’t do anything with her hair at week 12 or 14 after the last cut.

I’ve cut my two son’s hair, my sister’s hair, and my husband’s hair. I’ve given Aubrey bangs once and trimmed her dead ends many times. I cut my nephews’ hair when they were sleeping. 

Many years ago I cut my dad’s neck when giving him a trim. He politely declined haircuts after that. Lately, however, with his memory issues, he’s in my queue again.

I’ve even trimmed my hair–more times than I can count.

And now, here I am, nine inches lighter and feeling like a new woman. Sure, it was shorter than expected, but I’ve decided to embrace the spontaneity. Besides, it’s just hair—it’ll grow back! In the meantime, I’m getting used to turning my head a little faster with this sleek new ‘do. Maybe next time, I’ll go for a daring color or an even bolder cut. Who knows? But one thing’s for sure: with or without scissors in my hand, I’ve learned that life, like a good haircut, is all about keeping things even… and a little bit adventurous.

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