Natural Hair Envy is Why I became a Natural!

Compliments of Google Image

There I was sitting in the mall's food court staring endlessly at a women's hair.  Her curls streamed the back of her neck endlessly, cascaded over her shoulder's effortlessly and shined radiantly under the soft iridescent light of the fluorescent bulbs in the food court.  I remember wondering what treatment or process she used to get such healthy hair. I sat wishing that I had the nerve to ask her where she got her hair done or what product's she used.  And that, is exactly what I did.  I sat there, wishing,  that one day those long flowing stresses would be my crown and glory.  I had no idea of the ethnicity, the process or if it was a treatment.  I just knew that my hair in its relaxed state was not given the body that this girl's hair was.  So I did as many of us would have done.  I went home and braided my chemically treated strands to give the illusion of wavy or curly hair.  Now this may not have been everyones instinct to do but something about the freedom the health and the style in this woman's curl captivated and intrigued me to no end.  After trying thin braid outs that came out to stringy, thick braid outs that came out to limp and wet braid outs that came out too limp. I finally just twisted my hair out and yes, the illusion of the wave was definitely there, but the volume the strength and the sheen were no where in sight.  Why?  I had no idea as to why at the time.  Several years passed and I still had the vague memory of that woman's crown and glory.  I still remembered the strength that ran through both her presence and her hair.  Time went on and never did I think to ask anyone of that hairstyle.  Often in the past if I seen a fly doobi' or rockin' wrap I wouldn't think twice to ask someone or even the person how they obtained that look.  But I never did, I continued processing my hair and chucked her hair up to simply be hair of a different persuasion.  Before long I notice a new fad that had taken place in many of our hair was singing the same song as woman I had encountered year's earlier.  Was the Jerri curl making a come back in a more chic way, was it that more babies of multiple diversities were being birthed, or was there a new brand of weave on the market. The answer for all was no.  They had simply embraced the hair that naturally toiled, turned and curved out of their scalps.  they had embraced the soft and kinky strands that we had all to often forgotten long after receiving that first flat iron, press out or texturizer.  After all, the purpose was to "maintain" or make our hair "manageable".  But why was their hair so tamed in it's natural "skin"

African American women have been rocking there hair in it's natural persona long before Chris Rock's well known biography "Good Hair" hit media.  They have been silently educating through their display of beauty and effortlessly rocked their hair in all it's glory.   From Whoopi Goldberg to Camille Cosby these women have supported and flawlessly grabbed the attention of the media to show that our hair is not only beautiful but fierce.  Our hair demands attention, it demands to be noticed and more than ever it demands to be accepted.  After several long evenings of seeking and scouring to find the answer to what I was silently wanting, I found it, and everywhere.  I found it on Facebook through I <3 Naturalista, I found it on YouTube through YouTube Alumni and veterans such as NikkiMae, Kimmytube and MsVcharles my favorites.  I found it through twitter and blogs such as Naturalsunshine.ning, and CurlyNikki.  I found it through women that decided to break out of the status quo embrace beauty in all its textures and pave the way for many of us to follow.  My journey has just started and it has been just that, a journey.  I have had to explain, encourage, answer and defend my decision to choose to accept the hair that God has chosen for me.  And I don't mind doing it, because if my hair can stream the back of my neck endlessly, cascaded over my shoulder's effortlessly and shine radiantly under the soft iridescent light of the fluorescent bulbs I have did my part in representing our healthy hair.