Bottle Brunette

Many years ago, I had a hairdresser who understood that I couldn’t afford to keep making appointments with her to colour my hair. She gave me some great tips as to the best brands and shades of colours for my hair, and I have been colouring my own hair ever since. In the years since, I’ve gone through blonde, auburn/orange/red and light brown phases, and now find myself to be a dark brunette.

I had been colouring my hair for so long that I actually couldn’t quite remember what my natural hair colour was. But I think I have found it. The funny thing is, when I look at the loaded shelves of hair colour in the store, this one colour is the one that I keep gravitating to. Even my hairdresser cannot tell if the colour is fresh or has faded. My roots don’t give anything away. Only the white hairs that poke through tell me that it’s perhaps time for a fresh application.

Changing hair colour is an easy way to make a change, and although some dyes are marketed as “permanent”, the new colour fades and grows out eventually, so it’s not really “permanent”, is it?

Wouldn’t it be a kick if we could make life changes in the same way. Need patience? Open a bottle of “Wait Awhile Black”, apply carefully remembering to massage in completely, wait 25 minutes and then rinse. Too bad the only application of “patience” here is waiting the 25 minutes to rinse. Life’s just not like that.

As my boys grow older, they are challenged with more difficult life questions. The most important question isn’t “What video game should I play” (although that’s a question still asked ...), but rather “What do I want to be when I grow up?” “What kind of career do I want to pursue?” “Should I go to university or college, and if so, where?” “What course of study should I take?” “Where can I find a job?” The answers to these questions aren’t found in a bottle (hair colour or otherwise). Sometimes you just need to be brave and step out and try something.

On a couple of recent occasions I bumped into people that I haven’t seen in a number of years. I found it odd that each one commented on the colour of my hair, and the fact that it is much darker now than it used to be when I last saw these folks. It’s not just my hair colour that is different; I think I’m different too. It's possible that I am now more at home and confident with who I am, and that’s evidenced by my hair colour representing the natural “me”.

Perhaps it’s necessary to try different paths (ie. different hair colours?) before we find the one that truly fits who we are.