short hair 4ever

Growing up I always had pretty long hair, at least shoulder length. All girls in my town did. In high school every girl had long hair and we all wore them in ponytails. Boooring! Summer before senior year, my family took a road-trip up the west coast and on our way back we stopped in Seattle to visit with family friends. My mom encouraged me and I took the plunge and cut off all my hair. Short. Super short. I loved it! I had no idea how to style it (the only product I knew of was gel and I applied it liberally) and pictures of me from the time now make me cringe. Ever since then I've kept it short—growing it out to an ear-length bob at the longest. Then, after Dara was born, I got this crazy idea that I would grow it out long and luxurious (like a Kardashian). The whole time I was constantly trying to pin it back, get it into a ponytail or somehow keep it off my face. I felt dowdy, plain and basically unattractive. So, I cut it all off again and now I feel fabulous.
 

My mom had short hair for most of my childhood. When I look at myself in the mirror I see her and I feel even more beautiful. (Isn't she fabulous? That picture was taken in 1990 (full version) and I remember her picking out the outfits my brother and I would wear from the Gap. I thought it was so cool that 1) we all matched and 2) I was wearing a vest! Le sigh.)