Previous Challenge Entry (Level 1 – Beginner)
Topic: PRIDE (inflated opinion of one’s self) (02/19/15)
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TITLE: MY HAIR | Previous Challenge Entry
By Libby Peevy
02/24/15 -
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I was blessed to be born with a very thick head of brown hair. All of my life I was told by those less fortunate than I how jealous they were of my thick hair. I smiled and inside secretly gloated on the fact that I had thick hair and they didn’t. Pride rears its’ ugly head.
I began to grow my hair long in my 20’s. It continued to grow and reached my waist by age 30. I valued my hair and it was a major part of my identity. Long, luxurious hair also seemed to attract guys. My long hair made me feel pretty.
When I turned 40 years old, I decided I did not want to look like an “aging hippy” whose hair would eventually grow gray and old looking. I made a scary decision to cut the long length off. My beautician made a very thick, long braid of my hair securing each end with a rubber band and just whacked the braid off. Then I had a head of shoulder-length hair that was still okay because it was thick.
My beloved grandmother also had long hair and she did the same thing to her hair - braided it and cut it off. I still have her braid that she kept and wrapped in a newspaper in the 1920’s. I wrapped my long braid in a newspaper dated 1984 and it resides alongside her braid in the bottom of my antique trunk.
Every once in a while I pull out my beautiful long, luxurious braid from my antique trunk and winsomely look at it wishing I still had it attached to my head. Pride just doesn’t die easily, does it?
Last year I turned 63 years old and my hair began coming out of my head each time I washed it. It wasn’t just a few strands, but cupped handfuls each time I shampooed. Of course I immediately thought I must have a brain tumor or something and went to the doctor. After a round of tests there were no medical problems results. My doctor said it could be stress related or that women in the 60’s age group sometimes start to lose their hair. Thankfully I didn’t have a brain tumor, but his explanations didn’t particularly comfort me. My hair loss was drastic and I had obviously large bald spots on my head. I became very self-conscious and began wearing ball caps to church and while I was out in public to cover my bald spots. Yes, that pride thing is still with me, just in a different manner.
As I often do when I face problems, I turned to God. I asked Him why my hair was falling out and He led me to the Bible. He reminded me that in Judges 16:13 Samson’s strength had been his 7 long braids of hair that he was very proud of. Samson thought he was invincible because of his lovely long locks. We know that in the end his pride was his downfall.
Looking back on my life I see I may have valued my own thick hair too much and had a prideful, inflated opinion of myself. I hang my head in shame, but just a little, so that my bald spots are not visible.
I am still losing hair at a slower rate, but I still cringe when I see it come out. I have started collecting it and now have a small Ziploc full of hair. I think I might try to learn how to make it into a toupee for my head. At least the colors would match.
Sense of humor is important to me so now when my hair comes out I remind God that “He has even the very hairs of my head numbered” (Matthew 10:30 and Luke 12:7). Then I ask Him if we are up to 878 or 879 strands that I have lost? I figure He must be chuckling.
I hope that God is keeping a numbered head count of each lost hair strand because I really would like to have them all back someday!
Finally, I know that God loves me and His kind of Love does not depend on how much hair I have on my head. If He can accept my bald spots, then so can I.
I have learned a hard lesson about myself in that pride really is a “hairy” part of my life!
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Your illustration would be more readable if you double space between paragraphs.
Some of your introductory elements could use commas.
Example:
Looking back on my life, I see I may have valued my own thick hair too much ...
My sister could totally relate to this story, she loses so much hair each day, it's on her clothing, floor, bathtub, hers is due to stress and lupus. So, I will share this story with her, I'm sure she'll appreciate it immensely.
Well done, and thank you for sharing this with us.
God bless~
God bless~