Her name is Coco!

My Photo Hair Journey

I chopped all my hair off in 2008. Almost a year after I had Avery and discovered that working, taking care of a child, husband, a home, and trying to manage relaxers, 1 hr. blowdrys and 30min flat irons, once a week was for the birds! It was an impulse move(like most of my decisons) and I went balls out! My hair was practically to my scalp. I promptly had a mini break down and a identity crisis, I was back at the salon two days later trying to figure out what I could do not to look like...well..Me! I was holding back the ugly cry as the salon manager talked me down from the bridge. Who was this girl looking back at me? I was the Black Girl Next Door, I had my signature swoop bang, and on days when doing nothing to my hair was the best option, a cute messy bun was my go to style. I had "good hair", and now I had super short tiny curls all over my head and I felt like somebody's "Life Partner"! I refused a retexturizer, the point was to be chemical and maintenance free, so... the grow out began. I had a few set backs; a trial and very error mo hawk, platinum blonde etc. But I rode it out, the transition was a bitch, and slowly but surely my hair grew and my curls defined, I found my style, and I embraced my beautiful hair. My hair is free and easy and it now defines me in a way that the "girl next door" never could. I attended a natural hair meetup while living in Vegas and was introduced to a family of women who had gone natural. We shared our stories, our challenges, our self discovery, it was a connection, a bond and support that we shared and it was an amazing feeling. I have found a growing community online, and a kinship between black women that I have never seen before. I met Cassadie of natural selection through an online search and got lucky that she was having a Natural Hair Event within the month. I had such a great time talking, sharing, and admiring all the women of color and all the different hair textures and styles. When emailing Cassadie, she had signed her email for her and her hair "Lola"! I loved it, I asked her about the name and she said her hair had taken on a life of it's own and it had personality... we had a good laugh! I totally agree, my hair is wild, sexy, ornery, spirally, is all shades of cinnamon, and on any given day doing whatever the hell she wants to do... her name is Coco!