Ever since I grew up, people have always made fun of my hair. From nicknames like “carrot top” to “soulless ginger,” it was always hard for me to accept the beauty of my hair. It’s unique. The wide variety of shades, tones and texture among red heads makes each head of hair the evermore unique. So, I’m here to talk about 3 reasons why I love my ginger hair.
Nonetheless, throughout the years, I’ve learned how to not only accept the color of my hair, but love and embrace it. If you are a fellow red head struggling to love your hair, here are some reasons why I love my hair, and would never dye it.
Compliments follow you where ever you go.
Across the globe, red heads are generally rare. Here at DU, there’s actually a fairly large population of red heads, at least from my experience. While living in Louisiana, I saw maybe one family of red heads every year. In St. Louis, it was similar to DU, a pretty big amount of red heads to be spotted. This being said, from what I’ve seen, whether there are many or none, red heads receive compliments almost every time they go out.
Okay, maybe not every time, but it’s frequent enough to take note of and feel more confident about our hair. The best place to get an ego boost, from my experience, is Alabama. When visiting my Nana, almost every day and every place we went someone would take time to stop me and tell me how beautiful my hair is.
Your friends can easily spot you in crowds.
Unless you’re in an improv group or somewhere like Ireland that is home to red head genes, it’s unlikely that they’ll be many red heads in a crowd you’re in. The perks of this is that not only can your friends easily spot you, but you make an impression on people solely due to your hair color. To me, even in the professional world, being able to stand out among the crowd in a subtle, natural way can give you a slight advantage.
Other redheads will most likely relate to you.
Making connections as the social creatures we are is always fun, and being a redhead is another identity I can use to relate to other people. Most redheads have other “fair” genes, such as fair skin and pale eyes, due to the shared mutation of the MC1R gene (click here to learn more about the genetics of red hair!). Sunscreen expenses, sensitive skin, childhood bullying, fetishization, and stereotypes are some topics we are able to bond over, and it’s always nice to have someone else understand your experience through their own personal experience.
You are unique.
As stated earlier, redheads are unique. We make up 2% of the world population, and I’m pretty sure that number is decreasing, as it is a recessive gene. Your hair being so rare, due to the genetic mutation being passed down being rare, gives you an additional twist to your genetic code and overall who you are. Remember that your hair just gives you an additional flare in life. Do not let the haters keep you down.