My child learned, at a young age, the power of big hair. It is something I have always wanted, but have never had the luxury of having. In the 80's, when big hair defined who you were, I was cursed with short wispy blonde locks. This tiny beauty, however, must have inherited a big hair gene that I never knew was lying dormant inside of me. I'm guilty of big hair envy and a feeling of sadness still wells up inside of me as I pass down the hair care aisle and see all of the hair freezing and big sexy hair products used to create these heavenly coifs. My daughter enjoys her gift of big hair and spends many an hour in front of the mirror working it into styles that would make Miss America and fairy tale princesses proud. I've discovered, while looking in from the outside of the big hair world, that there is a sisterly bond, an unspoken covenant, between those who are lucky enough to have big hair. This bond transcends language barriers, shorelines, and age differences. Let me explain....Most every mall in America has vendors in the inside court area who sell hair straighteners, iron rods and such. Many of these saleswoman are here on work visas from Israel. They are dark haired beauties armed with kind smiles, big hair and a cash register. While their English may be limited, they have no problem communicating with their big haired sisters. My daughter can walk in the mall and I instantly hear.... "Oh my God, you are beautiful. Look at your hair! Look at both of you." They hug, touch each other's long locks, and speak in some kind of secret language of giggles and hair care terminology. I hear whispers about phenol derivatives, chemical changes and finishing sprays used to maintain styles of the hardest to hold hair. There are more giggles and dark hair begins to fly out in all directions as they shape, straighten, mold and create new beauty doos. I stand there with my straight wispy blonde strands and wonder if the salesgirl's comments are sincere or just quoted from a sales manual that is obviously well written because before this happy reunion is over, my child's hair is three inches bigger, I'm feeling pretty sexy, too and I've written out another check for $120.00 I know women who spend thousands of dollars on pills and therapists to fight depression and raise their self esteem, so I never feel guilty about my occasional support of these hair care girl's work in America when they leave me feeling confident and sexy even if it is only until the chemicals break down and my hair is flat again. After our last encounter with our hair care friends, my daughter left with a large bag of hair care products and I left with the notion that I, too, would look good in a pair of gold spandex pants and leather boots like Aleana and Marnisha were wearing. Thank God better senses prevailed and I remembered that is only a look you can pull off with big hair and a small butt. There is a mathematical formula that calculates the mass of one's hair style and the size of one's back-side to determine if you can pull off that look without defying laws of physics, breaking any fashion rules or scaring friends and neighbors. Our friends wore this look well. As a forty six year old mother of two, I accepted the fact that I was a few years too late and a few hairs too short to wrap my ass in spandex and parade around in boots. But oh...if I only could!
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