"What happened to your hair, Grandma?" Trenton asked yesterday as he rubbed his chubby fingers over my fuzzy head."Do you mean why does my head feel funny?"
I hugged my sweetheart grandson a little closer.
My locks and even a few eyebrows and lashes are starting to make an appearance now that my chemotherapy treatments are finished, thank goodness. At first, getting used to being hairless was a bit of a stretch for this vain old gal.
Eventually, though, I got used to it and I really don't mind going without a hat, even in public now. I definitely never wear any chapeau of any description within my own walls. Too hot. Too bothersome. Too indicative that vanity still gnaws.
It's been almost six months since my locks departed. That's a significant portion of Trenton's life when I think about it. Grandma without hair has been the norm for a while. So as he ran his little fingers along the top of my head yesterday, Trenton got a bit of a surprise.
"Grandma's hair is starting to grow back," I told the little munchkin.
Trenton looked at me with that irresistible grin and then stroked my head once again and made the most precious statement:
"Grandma. Your hair is coming back home!"
So there I have it. My hair as it slowly emerges really is coming home to roost - right on top of my head. And for that I am grateful. I'm not particularly fond of the hue, however I keep telling myself - at least it's hair.
I remember when Trenton asked the very same question when I lost my hair back in June. "Where is Grandma's Hair?" became the title of a rhyming picture book manuscript that I wrote as a result.
Here's a taste:
Where is Grandma’s Hair?
© 2008 Glynis M. Belec
I looked in the bathroom
I looked behind the chair
I looked in the cupboard
Where is Grandma’s hair?
I looked in my bedroom
I looked in my bed
I’m worried about Grandma -
There’s no hair on her head.
I called up the doctor
On my plastic phone
But he would not answer
There was no dial tone.
I looked in the laundry room
I looked on the shelf
I looked in the basket
I can’t find it myself.
So I went up to Mommy
And asked her what was wrong
“Grandma’s hair has disappeared -
It used to be so long.”
“Grandma has a sickness,”
Mommy’s face looked sad.
“The doctor called it cancer
But the news isn’t bad.”
“When Grandma went to hospital
The doctor said, ‘Don’t fret.’
We’ll give her some medicine
No need to be upset.”
I went into Grandma’s room
She was wearing a hat
She gave me a hug and asked,
“Shall we have a chat?”
‘Yes,” I told my Grandma
“Where is your hair?
I have looked in every room
I even said a prayer.”
“The medicine the doctor gives,
Sometimes makes me sick,
My hair fell out but then he said,
‘It will soon grow back in thick.’”
Then Grandma told me something else
She said, “Come over here.”
She winked and opened up a drawer
And then she pulled me near.
I did not need to search again
For Grandma’s long, lost hair
When I looked inside the drawer
I laughed at what was there.
Grandma called them “hair hats”
Blonde, black, brown and red
Wigs of every size and shape
To cover her bald head!
© 2008 Glynis M. Belec
I looked in the bathroom
I looked behind the chair
I looked in the cupboard
Where is Grandma’s hair?
I looked in my bedroom
I looked in my bed
I’m worried about Grandma -
There’s no hair on her head.
I called up the doctor
On my plastic phone
But he would not answer
There was no dial tone.
I looked in the laundry room
I looked on the shelf
I looked in the basket
I can’t find it myself.
So I went up to Mommy
And asked her what was wrong
“Grandma’s hair has disappeared -
It used to be so long.”
“Grandma has a sickness,”
Mommy’s face looked sad.
“The doctor called it cancer
But the news isn’t bad.”
“When Grandma went to hospital
The doctor said, ‘Don’t fret.’
We’ll give her some medicine
No need to be upset.”
I went into Grandma’s room
She was wearing a hat
She gave me a hug and asked,
“Shall we have a chat?”
‘Yes,” I told my Grandma
“Where is your hair?
I have looked in every room
I even said a prayer.”
“The medicine the doctor gives,
Sometimes makes me sick,
My hair fell out but then he said,
‘It will soon grow back in thick.’”
Then Grandma told me something else
She said, “Come over here.”
She winked and opened up a drawer
And then she pulled me near.
I did not need to search again
For Grandma’s long, lost hair
When I looked inside the drawer
I laughed at what was there.
Grandma called them “hair hats”
Blonde, black, brown and red
Wigs of every size and shape
To cover her bald head!
*******
8 comments:
Out of the mouths of babes as you always say!!! That's my son!!
Glynis, that will make a great picture book. Kids need ways to explore these changes.
And I'm glad your hair is coming home to roost. It's getting cold outside!
Ahh...beautiful poem! You have such a gift and I thank you for using it!
The race is on for the fastest grower, my friend. You are sporting some lovely locks. My girls don't go to bed at night without saying a prayer, followed by hugs and kisses, and then a good rub over my stubble.
Beautiful! I can see it in a book - hope it touches many more lives!!
And you have been inspiringly brave through it all. Bless you, Glynis.
Wonderful!! This is something that everyone should have access to!! Again, wonderful!!
That brought tears to my eyes! I LOVE the poem - and completely understand the hair thing. You're not vain to want hair mind you. It's normal, part of our faces almost and we NEED the silly stuff.
But once it starts, it goes crazy,[generally mine is growing straight upward!] and can be very amusing when you wake up in the morning looking like a hedge. Mine grew in black and white, as if my head thought it was being funny - soon fixed that!
May your hair grow at a rate of knots :o)
x
That would be a dandy picture book, Glynis.
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