There was a time when I had straight hair.
Going through my photo album, I had straight hair with some small curls at the end. My hair back then was manageable and soft to the touch. The mornings were easier because the bristle brush never painfully tugged my straight hair. My hair went past my shoulders and it was never a problem for me or my mom.
My straight hair was fine, but that all changed when I turned seven.
Out of nowhere my straight hair transformed into curls. Thick curls, I might add. My face was so engulfed by the massive curls on my head that I had to tie up my hair just to see myself in the mirror. After my seventh birthday, I hated my curly hair.
It was too frizzy. It was too puffy. It was just too much for me.
I didn't want to accept the fact that my straight hair was gone for good. No matter how many times I washed my hair during bath time, the curls came back. Every time I dried my hair, the frizziness made my hair ten times worse. I even had to cut my hair short because maintaining it was overwhelming.
I just hated my hair for a long time.
However, my mom would always say this: "A girl who has straight hair wants curls. A girl who has curly hair wants to straighten it."
Whether or not this is true, I believe it is. I missed the times where I can get out of bed and do minimal work on my hair. But there are girls with straight hair who want the curls because of the volume and bounce it adds to their hair. And for those with wavy hair—the "perfect hair"—they have their fair share of in-between struggles from both sides of the hair spectrum (curly and straight). In the end, we want what we can't have.
It took until my sophomore year in high school to truly embrace my curls. In a way, I was destined to get curly hair since my father had curls along with my paternal grandmother. And I am okay with my hair because it's a part of me. It is my natural hair that I will always wake up to every single day.
This goes the same for any hair type with any combination. Long or short. Frizzy or flat. Thick or thin. Whatever your hair might be, just know that it adds to your individuality and personality. You might have a love/hate relationship with your hair at times. You might get frustrated if your hair just doesn't work with you. You might just want to do something else with your hair, but just remember that your natural hair is unique to you.
And nothing is better than rocking your natural hair with so much confidence.
