makin' the chop: why i cut my hair.

hey doodle-bugs! hope your weeks are kickin' off right.

i've been quite productive today, actually. got a great run in this morning, worked in the kitchen a bit, and sorted through my closet to see what i have to wear "back to school."

yes, i am five. where's my pocket protector, and which bus do i ride?

oh, and p.s. - last night, i had the ingenius revelation to make my fresh salsa in the food processor. it usually takes about 30 minutes chopping by hand, and last night it took... five. i'm kicking myself.

- - - WARNING: REALLY RIDICULOUS PICTURES AHEAD - - -

i thought i'd address something i get questions about all the time: my hair.

all through high school, i had super looooong, curly hair halfway down my back. it was my signature. it was larger than life, resided in it's own zip code, and possessed a distinct personality.

i was hyper-insecure about my body, but was convinced i could hide behind my hair. i felt safe wearing it as my mask: at least if i hated everything else about myself, my hair was bangin'. every compliment i ever got was about my curls. 

so why did i cut it all off? good question.

why i chopped off my hair, and what i learned from it.

honestly? i cut my hair because i was ready for a change. a big one.

i had just broken up with my high school sweetheart, lived in a new town, started at a new college, and was making new friends. i wasn't the same girl as i was in high school, for better or worse, and i was ready to show it.

so the inches came off. at first, i was absolutely terrified. no longer could i hide my body (not that hair is an effective veil anyways)... what you saw was what you got. no BS.

for a while, i felt ugly, loathed it, regretted it, and then i realized - this is who i'm meant to be.

i'm not a diva, and i don't do high-maintanence. the long barbie hair was not my personality, not at all. and no offense to those with long, beautiful hair (gorgeous!), but honestly, every girl you see has long hair. they all look the same. shake it up a bit, ya know?

the surprise? cutting my hair was my "tipping point." i realized i had been pretending to be someone else for far too long. i dressed, spoke, and acted how i thought others expected me to, and couldn't ever just be myself! after that hair appointment, i decided i would never put myself through that again.

what started as a simple trim turned into what i so desperately need: a kick-start towards self-acceptance.

i've sinced realized many things about myself; some scary, and some thrilling. i'm not a girly girl. i don't like wearing a lot of make-up. i actually have pretty nice eyelashes. my body is just fine, without the curly veil. i'm not ugly. shockingly, i can run. i like tattoos, and can't wait to get more. i have muscles and curves. i'm constantly amazed by my body's changes.

and i'm proud of it. all of it. those things make me unique, and i wouldn't have uncovered any of them if i hadn't decided to just. be. me.

i love who i am, short hair and all. do you?

what "body security blanket" are you holding on to?

what's unique you love about yourself?

-rebekah