Singer, Songwriter and Actress, Solange said it best in her hit song, Don’t Touch My Hair, “Don’t touch my hair, when it’s the feelings I wear.” After the love hate, blood, sweat and tears me and my hair have went through, I feel the same way. Each race has hair struggles and I don’t think anyone can relate to the in most cases that a excited nine or ten year old black girl has sitting in the chair waiting for the relaxer to touch their hair. In reality, their oblivious that it’s probably one of the biggest mistakes they’re going to make.
I didn’t really know what a relaxer was or what it would do besides make it “tamed” and straight but I begged for it anyway…and I got it. 5 years later, I was still getting relaxers regularly and I had felt the burn literally (no seriously, because if you’ve ever gotten a relaxer you know they burn). My hair was brittle, uneven, heat damaged and everything in between so in the summer of my 10th grade year I decided to go natural.
While the big chop was an option, which is cutting off majority or all of your hair and starting over, I choose transitioning. Transitioning is cutting your hair off of chemicals and training it back to its natural state and eventually cutting off the rest of the relaxers. Regardless to the method you use, all you need is a good gel, conditioner, and curl cream. What started as a bet with my brother turned into a new found love for my natural hair.
What is natural?
There has been many debates on what being natural actually is and what makes someone natural. For example, I have been ridiculed for wearing weave although I claim to be natural. The only thing that determines whether you are natural or not is if your hair is relaxed or in it’s natural, chemical-free state. Wearing weave, getting braids, dyed hair, straightening your hair, or just simply wearing your fro are all ways you can choose to wear your natural. Don’t be afraid to rock your natural hair. And love your hair! Every fly away, edge that no gel can seem to hold.