The dark-haired young girl with the heavily drawn on eyebrows is scanning my groceries by feel. I know this because the only time she actually looks at my groceries is with a glance to her left to grab another item. Mostly, she is looking at me. By the time the scanner has beep-beeped its final beep and my docket is slithering up and out of the cash register, I've mustered enough courage to ask: "Is there something ..? Did you want to ask me ... something?" (this seemed a more subtle approach than frowning and demanding: "What are you staring at?"). She has the decency to look embarrassed - but only a little bit. I am smiling warmly to ensure she feels comfortable enough to answer honestly. This tactic works. "It's your eyebrows," she says, a little shyly. "They are dark. They are black. The hair is black." (the words are tumbling out of her mouth now and she's almost repeating herself). "Your hair is so grey, (nodding and pointing with her eyes to the hair on my head), but your eyebrows .... they're not. There is no silver hair in your eyebrows ..." This last sentence is said with a rising lilt; a definite question-mark at the end. The very young girl with the heavily drawn-on eyebrows (yes, I know I've said that before, but I'm still perplexed as to why her every eyebrow hair has been plucked out) is questioning the authenticity of my brows' colour. I am still smiling warmly as I stroke my finger tips across my eyebrows, showing her no colour comes off; my brows are not penciled. And, my smile grows to a grin when I pick up my grocery bag and cheerfully tell her I was born brunette and I am still a brunette. Other than on my head.
22 Comments
16/10/2015 10:47:36 pm
Great blog!. As a man, who has embraced both my silver and my baldness, only after years of both internal and external torment, i applaud you!
shelly
17/10/2015 09:28:38 am
Refreshing and inspiring,I need this.
Donna L'Amie
17/10/2015 11:01:40 am
Love your breezy writing style and your positive outlook. Keep shining
Andy
17/10/2015 01:10:04 pm
Fantastic work. My hairdresser will also be very happy when I tell her about this! xxx 17/10/2015 05:20:24 pm
This is a great idea for a blog! Welcome to blogging! Congratulations and best wishes:) 17/10/2015 08:27:00 pm
One post in and I love your blog already Victoria. Thank you so much for what you are sharing... it is exactly what I have been searching the net for recently. Age 43, I am at the salt and pepper stage of greying and usually cave in and colour again after 1-2 inches of grey start showing.
Mary Hurley
19/10/2015 10:01:26 am
Hi Victoria, I have recently started growing out my grey hair. Not an easy process. I didn't expect such reaction both from friends an family who with such comments: you can't go grey, you will look old, you are so brave. I keep going in the belief that if I don't like it I can colour it and if I do well it will be a bonus. It's quite liberating actually and I am fascinated by how the mixture of emotions from others and myself. Thanks for setting up this blog. We need more women like you to empower others. Good on Victoria you look amazing. Xx Ahhh, yes! The reactions, Mary. The opinions come, often unbidden. I say bah-humbug to the "you will look so old'' prediction. Aside from being an unkind judgement call, it is not necessarily so. I believe it's not just our hair colour that can make us look older than we are ... but I'll blog about that soon enough. Good on YOU for your fabulous attitude and, you're right, it's not irreversible if you get cold feet. Thank you for your lovely comments. Hope your day is ... gold! xo
Sonya
19/10/2015 05:53:51 pm
Funny, just set up in the bathroom to colour my natural regrowth, thought I'd check my Facebook and a friend had shared your post! Isn't that coincidental! Maybe at 47yrs I could be as brave as you. Your comment of feeling liberated has got me seriously considering giving my natural beauty a shot to shine! A little scary but Thanks!
Lesley Ingham
20/10/2015 03:11:17 pm
Hi Victoria, I loved this post and the fact that women can be Silver Foxes too. At 56 I have let my hair go its natural colour and what a relief! Maybe I look older, but probably I just look my age, and I'm fine with that. I think we should strive less to look younger and more to be happy with who we are. Keep blogging! I am delighted you enjoyed my first wee post, Lesley. And, yes ... I will indeed keep blogging. I'm on a roll, now! I have some thoughts I plan to share about that 'striving' to look younger issue - and our happiness quota around all that. Thank you for your message. I have a Facebook page now too, especially for the blog, if you'd like to visit it and 'Like' it - you'll then be advised when I've posted on the blog (that is, if you are a Facebooker?) it's called 'Silver is Gold - Ageing Gracefully' - thanks again, Victoria o Hi Victoria, oh my goodness I love this post! I have naturally curly, long, mostly silver hair now and my eyebrows are still dark too. I've never really thought about that but I certainly will have a look in the mirror right now!! Love your blog and I have never dyed my hair even though all of my friends can't believe I won't. they keep telling me to. I am very comfortable in my own skin and ADORE my silver hairs. Mum who is now 88 is pure white and all the hairdressers rave about her beautiful hair. I can't wait!! Leave a Reply. |
Hello,
|
RSS Feed
