After returning from Ethiopia, I decided it was finally time to begin the process of donating my hair. I had hoped to do this my senior year of high school, but since a lot of girls in my class got short haircuts at the end of the year [and I didn't want to be like everyone else] I decided to hold off on the donation. Wow, now that I've written that down...all I can think is "HOW SELFISH!!!" Well, now I'm older and hopefully a little bit wiser.
Before I left for Ethiopia, I had my sister, Amber, cut my hair to its shortest length. Luckily, my hair was already fairly long so it didn't look too bad. This was so that it would be easier to manage since I had no idea how often we would be having electricity or running water. During my 10 months in Ethiopia, I only had my hair cut once (by Kyle), so upon returning to the States it was fairly long. I went to my hair salon and had it nicely trimmed, keeping the "no layers" look.
A few months into my first semester of medical school, my other sister, Emily (she's the middle kid), and I made an agreement that we would donate our hair on March 21, 2011. This may seem like a random date, but it's actually the Baha'i New Year. With that date set in stone, I did some research on where to donate my hair. With some quick fact checking, I decided to donate to Pantene Beautiful Lengths. My alternative was Locks of Love, but they required more hair (10" vs. 8" for Pantene) and there was some sketchiness as to what LoL was doing with the hair (i.e. if the hair wasn't usable for a wig, they would sell it). Pantene also is partnered with the American Cancer Society, which just makes me feel like it's a more legit company.
When Emily and I scheduled our donation date, we had no idea that I would be getting engaged the week before. After that happened, I decided it wait until after the wedding, which was great because it meant my hair would be even less short post-cutting! Almost a full year after getting back from Ethiopia, I finally donated my hair! I polled some friends to see what type of cut I should get, and two people who don't talk to each other gave the same picture...so this is what I went with:
Before I left for Ethiopia, I had my sister, Amber, cut my hair to its shortest length. Luckily, my hair was already fairly long so it didn't look too bad. This was so that it would be easier to manage since I had no idea how often we would be having electricity or running water. During my 10 months in Ethiopia, I only had my hair cut once (by Kyle), so upon returning to the States it was fairly long. I went to my hair salon and had it nicely trimmed, keeping the "no layers" look.
A few months into my first semester of medical school, my other sister, Emily (she's the middle kid), and I made an agreement that we would donate our hair on March 21, 2011. This may seem like a random date, but it's actually the Baha'i New Year. With that date set in stone, I did some research on where to donate my hair. With some quick fact checking, I decided to donate to Pantene Beautiful Lengths. My alternative was Locks of Love, but they required more hair (10" vs. 8" for Pantene) and there was some sketchiness as to what LoL was doing with the hair (i.e. if the hair wasn't usable for a wig, they would sell it). Pantene also is partnered with the American Cancer Society, which just makes me feel like it's a more legit company.
When Emily and I scheduled our donation date, we had no idea that I would be getting engaged the week before. After that happened, I decided it wait until after the wedding, which was great because it meant my hair would be even less short post-cutting! Almost a full year after getting back from Ethiopia, I finally donated my hair! I polled some friends to see what type of cut I should get, and two people who don't talk to each other gave the same picture...so this is what I went with:
Post-donation
Of course, while it was that short, I never took the time to try to style it like that (although I thought I would). It was fun for a bit, until I had to go to clinic and my bangs or hair would fall in my face. Luckily it wasn't long enough to fall onto the patients, but it still greatly hindered my visibility and was frustrating overall. It's grown out quite a bit now and my goal is not to cut it again until winter. We'll see how it goes!
If you've ever been remotely interested in donating, I highly recommend it. It's a great experience, and it's a temporary loss on your part. For those who have been blessed with gorgeous hair, why not share the beauty with others who are not so fortunate? If you've heard of Relay for Life or any of the numerous cancer awareness fundraisers but never had the means ($$) to donate and thought that walking was really pointless, this is a very tangible way to make a difference in a cancer patient's life. Here's some motivational text from the thank you letter they sent me:
"On behalf of the Pantene Beautiful Lengths, with heartfelt appreciation, we thank you for giving so selflessly of yourself to women who are faced with hair loss from cancer treatment.
Your healthy ponytail will help give self confidence back to a special woman who is battling cancer so that she can fight the disease with a little more dignity. Your generosity is touching and we hope it will inspire many others to make the kindest cut of all.
Together, we can help bring some joy into the lives of women living with cancer."
If you've ever been remotely interested in donating, I highly recommend it. It's a great experience, and it's a temporary loss on your part. For those who have been blessed with gorgeous hair, why not share the beauty with others who are not so fortunate? If you've heard of Relay for Life or any of the numerous cancer awareness fundraisers but never had the means ($$) to donate and thought that walking was really pointless, this is a very tangible way to make a difference in a cancer patient's life. Here's some motivational text from the thank you letter they sent me:
"On behalf of the Pantene Beautiful Lengths, with heartfelt appreciation, we thank you for giving so selflessly of yourself to women who are faced with hair loss from cancer treatment.
Your healthy ponytail will help give self confidence back to a special woman who is battling cancer so that she can fight the disease with a little more dignity. Your generosity is touching and we hope it will inspire many others to make the kindest cut of all.
Together, we can help bring some joy into the lives of women living with cancer."
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