Your early 20's— the years that allow you to be carefree, reckless and make drunken decisions. Where you're young enough to not care, but looming adulthood advises you otherwise. I'm currently caught in an everlasting limbo of responsibilities and recklessness. I, like many others, found myself in a quandary, shedding my youth whilst grappling with the idea of adulthood. In short, I felt stuck.

The first few years of college proved to be very telling. I fell in love, made some friends, lost some friends and made some questionable decisions. However, through it all, I found myself evolving into a better me.This summer has been one of retrospection and appreciation for the changes I've made, and the level of maturity I've achieved. Although, it has been a positive journey of self-discovery, I often find myself feeling as if my reality is not on track with my personal progression. I was yearning for anything that would signify a physical change to accompany my mental progression. After vacillating between piercings, tattoos, wardrobe changes, etc. I finally decided on cutting my hair off.

As a black woman, who spent years transitioning back to my natural hair and cultivating a glorious curly fro, the idea of cutting off my hair should have been daunting. My hair was a source of pride, tied up in a myriad of self-confidence feats of learning to love myself. However, I had no qualms about the decision I was making. My need for symbolic change was far greater than my love for my hair! Granted, this haircut didn't make me any more "grown" than before, but the 13 inches that I cut was more than just hair to me. I was shedding my youth and overcoming my insecurities! My hair cut was the perfect balance between recklessness and maturity: a perfect reflection of my life currently. The surge of self-confidence I felt was truly liberating! My haircut perfectly fit the woman I was becoming: an ever evolving, self-assured, confident masterpiece.