Okay, so something happened today that I have to share!!
First of all, a short background: I was born with wavy, light-medium brown hair and have always been proud to be a brunette. I dyed my hair red a few times in college (first time was a dare from my roommate), but I always used a temporary, 28 wash color (I'm too chicken to use permanent color).
However, back in 2008, I spent the summer (3 months) in a small villa in Mexico. The small village that I lived in had no "running" water, and all of the villa's water was pumped up from the bottom of a rocky hill and distributed down through the villa. The water was not filtered and contained TONS of sediments and rust. After bathing in the water for three months, my hair turned brick red and was waxy and curly!! (not to mention how wrecked my skin was) Everyone thought I had dyed my hair red after I returned to the US.
Since 2008, my hair has remained red and never turned back to my natural color. The color has faded from brick red to an auburn color, but still remains red. At first I was HORRIFIED by the color of my hair! I wanted my natural color back, but I haven't seen it since. I had a hard time accepting the red hair, and briefly considered dying my hair brown again. However, I realized that I couldn't match my natural color and I'm still too chicken to use permanent color. I have slowly and gradually decided to accept my red hair.
I started noticing that people would refer to me as a "ginger" or a "redhead." I have never been able to use these names to describe myself (until recently), and I felt awkward when people would use those words to describe me. However, I can finally say that I LOVE being a redhead!!! I think that my new haircolor really suits my personality!! I have accepted my red hair as part of my body (just like my flat feet and my crooked nose). I have finally come to terms with being a redhead!!
Fast Forward to today: Over the past few weeks I have been worried about my hair. I changed shampoos a few weeks ago. I changed to a shampoo and treatment that are supposed to thicken hair. I have had EXTREMELY FINE hair since birth, and I am constantly looking for products to thicken hair without making it waxy or frizzy. The new shampoo and treatment seem to be working (making my hair thicker), but I think it is causing my hair color to fade. I have been looking in the mirror every day and I fear that the red is fading and the brown is coming back.
Five years ago, I would have been thrilled to have my brown hair back, but today I am sad to see my red hair fade. I want to dye my hair back to auburn, but I feel that it would be cheating (and I really like my "Mexican" red hair which cannot be found in any box at the store). Plus, I'm still chicken! I've been worried about losing my red hair!
BUT TODAY a nice lady made MY DAY!! A few weeks back I met a nice lady who volunteers at the church that I work at. Today, that lady, three of my coworkers and I were discussing Halloween costumes (the church is doing a fair and we are all wearing coordinating costumes). One of the costume options was Strawberry Shortcake. This lady suggested that I be Strawberry Shortcake because she said I ALREADY HAVE RED HAIR!!!
This lady has only known me a few weeks and she called me a redhead!!! It felt awesome!! Even though I'm not a fan of Strawberry Shortcake (I loved the classic Strawberry Shortcake as a girl, but don't care for the modern incarnation), I was flattered by her comment!
I guess the fading red hair is all in my head. I must be getting paranoid! If a lady who has only known me a few weeks calls me a redhead (and I have been using the new shampoo a few weeks), then I must not be as brunette as I thought!
I'm glad that I have finally accepted my "gingerness" because it looks like the hair is here to stay!!!
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