The Day I Donated My Hair

February 22nd. It was a sad day. A day full of horrible memories of watching my mom take her last breath. Of making phone calls. Of meeting with the funeral director. I will never forget that day in 2012. But this February 22nd, I wanted to turn it around. I wanted to honor my mom and continue living onward and upward as I know she would force me to do with any other loss.

So, I had made plans to chop off my long locks and donate them in her name to someone who needed them much more than I did. To a woman somewhere suffering from that sick monster we call "cancer," undergoing rigorous treatments, hanging on desperately, and losing her healthy hair in the process.

In the end, I know we'd all choose our life over our hair. Unfortunately, my mom didn't have a choice this time around for either. But, in the cancer battle she fought when she was younger than I am, she lost her hair. And I'll never forget those stories of the treatment she had to undergo, as chemo was in its early stages at that point. My mom is a miracle. She is my hero. I honestly don't know how she did it.

But I guess she gave some of that bravery to me because I marched into the greatest salon ever, Salon Ink in Mission Hills that Friday morning and couldn't have been more excited for the big chop. It meant more to me than any other haircut before. This was for her. For everything she taught me. For everything she helped me stand for. For everything she inspires me to be. For all the love she filled my life with.

I was ecstatic! It felt so great to feel the weight lifted as I heard those snips. To sit there and  look at that hair of mine in a ponytail. To just sit there and hold it. I guess it symbolized something much deeper for me on that day.

However, don't be fooled. My hair looks nice and lovely in the picture above but the backside looked like someone just took scissors to it and chopped my hair off. Oh, wait... that really happened ;) So, my stylist got to work, I explained to her the meaning behind my donation, and I walked out those doors feeling like a new woman!

This is the shortest my hair has ever been and I couldn't be happier with it. It's fresh. It's meaningful. And to be honest, it made February 22nd so much easier to get through.

And just as a reference, here's how long my hair was before the big chop! 8+ inches longer.

Although February 22nd will always be the day my mom died, like I said, setting this goal to donate my hair gave me something positive to look forward to and took my mind off all the negative. I just hope she approves of the new look ;) My mom always liked me better as a blonde. Sorry, Mom. Had to stick with the "bronde." :)

[I donated my hair to Pantene Beautiful Lengths and highly encourage all of you to make the big chop one day too!]