Mother's Day "Grays"

             This past Mother’s Day I was faced with a daunting personal dilemma.  However, I must admit that this dilemma was totally centered on nothing more than my vanity but it was daunting none-the-less.  It all started about ten years or so ago as my 30’s began to fade into the history books. I became traumatized by the emergence of one, then two, then sixty or seventy gray hairs.  They didn’t have the decency to evenly distribute themselves throughout my crowing glory.  Oh no!  My very rude grays conducted a full on frontal assault along my hairline.  Before I knew it I appeared to have aged ten years in a matter of days. Eventually I realized if I didn’t take action I could easily be mistaken for, of all things, someone my age!

             Like many other women, who are willing to be honest, the emergence of the “grays” shook me to my very core.  I felt as though I was standing on the continental divide of my life with my self-proclaimed “naturally youthful appearance” on one side and my uhm, “less-youthful” appearance on the other.  Whenever I looked into the mirror, which was often, the grays stood strong and unified  taunting me mercilessly.  I was sure support hose and pureed meals were soon to follow.  I was forced to accept the harsh and cruel fact that a significant portion of my self-proclaimed “naturally youthful appearance” would no longer be, well, natural.  Instead it would forever more come out of a box. Thus I became a regular in the hair color section of the beauty supply store. But finding the perfect hair color gave me fits.  For years I experimented with a variety of ‘blacks,’ ‘blonds’ and finally ‘reds’ to cover those unrelenting grays.  Ultimately it was my better half, who had been dragged into one beauty supply store too many, who ended the years of agony when he picked up a box of Cream of Nature Permanent Bronze Copper 6.4 hair color.  The hair color angels had finally smiled upon me.  There was magic inside that box!

            In order to keep the magic alive I often purchased several boxes of my Bronze Copper 6.4 at a time.  That way I was sure to be ready when the grays launched their monthly attack.  Well the night before Mother’s Day I was utterly stunned to see an entire cluster of grays gathered front and center just above my hairline.  Where on earth had they come from?  There had been no sign of them that morning.  I surely would have noticed this very large gathering.  I moved a few of my locs around and low and behold the grays had totally infiltrated the front of my head.  No worries though.  I confidently reached into the cabinet under the sink for my box of magic. O-M-G! Nothing!  I dropped to my knees and frantically shuffled through bottles of shampoos and conditioners.  My heart pounded as I realized I was out of Bronze Copper 6.4.  No magic.  So now what?  It was late no beauty supply stores were open.  It was hours before Mother’s Day, a day when all self respecting mothers want to be appreciated, exude charm and confidence, feel sexy and darn it, look youthful!  So here I am faced with the unthinkable possibility of having to actually look my age.  Oh the horror! I deserved so much better especially on Mother’s Day.

            After moping around the bathroom I nearly resigned myself to my fate.  I figured I would just have to “woman up” and deal with the situation.  But, duh, I was so caught up in my own vanity that I wasn’t thinking clearly.  Once I regained my senses I realized I didn’t have to “woman up” at all.  I had totally forgotten that Mother’s Day was “hat” day my church.  Better yet, my girlfriend had loaned me a cute straw hat to sport if I could make it work.  You betcha I could make it work!  Mother’s Day morning, off to church I went, proudly rocking the cute straw hat, tiled to the side.  It had allowed me to win another battle against those hostile grays and oh yes, keep my self-proclaimed “naturally youthful appearance” in tact!