Thursday, August 24, 2006

"It's just hair"

"it's just hair" my mom told me the first time she started chemo and her hair started to fall out. My brother, Greg and I went outside with her on a spring day and grabbed handfuls of hair from her head.. it came out effortlessly and flew away in the wind. There are a lot of things I've forgotten about her cancer but this is one thing that I will never forget. Her hair, literally flying in the wind.

I was amazed by her positive outlook, her ability to let go of something SO personal as her hair and most of all, was in awe of her strength. It couldn't have been easy to find out you had stage 4 cancer, start chemo treatments and loose your hair all within months of one another. It was not easy for my mom.. and SO many more that deal with cancer every day.. so from that very moment, I had a new realization of my own hair.

I've always been in love with my hair. Yes, I will admit it. I'm a little vain of the ol' Darcy locks. It is naturally curly, it can be straight, it's naturally (dirty) blond, and yeah, I like it. I got hair lucky. But when I experienced my moms amazing strength in loosing her own hair, I was quickly reminded that I should consider myself blessed to have hair. SO many people do not. People with alopecia, those that loose their hair to cancer... can you imagine? Havine to wear a hat at all times because hair shelters us from being cold? Or trying to escape the stares of people wondering why you do not have hair?

Last night was the night. I had scheduled a trim but had prepared myself all day that *if* I had enough hair, I was chopping.

And I did.
 

I could hear my mom saying, "it's just hair" and the tears started rolling. I miss her much more than I would EVER miss my hair.
 

Good thing one of my best friends (old roomdog and the new pregnant friend I mentioned on Friday) does my hair. She knew to keep cutting even though tears were rolling. And this is the result.
 
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I had forgotten that I had a neck!!
 

I'll give you a few facts about Locks of Love just in case you or someone who has long hair wants to donate.

* 10" minimum hair length (tip to tip)
* Hair may be colored or permed, but not bleached or chemically damaged
* Hair swept off the floor is not usable (put it into a ponytail and then cut the pony tail off)
* You may pull curly hair straight to measure the minimum 10"
* It takes 6-10 donators to make one wig
* most donators are children

And the best part about last night? I went to church after the chop and a little girl came up to me, told me she liked my new haircut and then told me that she'd like to grow hers out as well. I am crying again just writing this.. this is all in honor of my mom's death but that little girl was inspired enough to help out another person.. praise Jesus!!

I emailed my mom's best friend with pictures of last night's events. Her response?

"It seems the tragedy of your mom's suffering is still continually blessing others."

Amen.

36 comments:

Jill H said...

oh Darcy, YAY!!!!
so happy to see you w/your supa cute hair-dude =) and that you donated it to such an amazing cause. so very, very cool. i'm totally gonna do this w/Maria's hair when it's long enough. you are so inspiring, Darcy!!!!!! love ya, girly =)

Mara said...

ok, first of all, I know that your Mom is looking down on you right now SO proud!!
And second of all, you are gorgeous.
Long hair.
Short hair.
No hair.
You are gorgeous and your new haircut is so cute and trendy and just so very stylin'.
Love this story.
Love you for being so brave and giving.
XO.

Beth said...

You rock. Your mom rocked. You look amazing! Enough said :)

Jessica O'Brien said...

Darcy,
You are just so beautiful inside and out! Not only do I admire your donation to locks of love, but the new do- totally hot! I just cut mine shorter (though your change was really drastic) and I suprisingly love it! I hope you are in love with the new cut and so proud of yourself! xo

Kat said...

oh darcy! you totally made me cry. thats soooo awesome of you- and your new haircut looks cute!!!! i love your hair too, and now someone else can- so awesome. and i'm glad to hear that it can be colored. i was thinking of doing it also (you inspired me!!!) but someone told me you had to have "virgin" hair.
congrats, you look fabulous and you did it for such an awesome reason!!!!

Unknown said...

WOW....I LOVE LOVE LOVE the new do!! No other way to have your hair cut either than by someone you know so well!! It looks awesome and just think how gorgeous that person will be who gets the wig with your hair in it! So proud of you!!! You're much braver than I!

kristina proffitt said...

What a beautiful post, Darcy!! I LOVE your new do! I did the same thing (cut off 12 inches) a few years back and it was seriously one of the best things I've done in my life. So rewarding to know that we're helping out other people by doing something so simple as getting a haircut. I am so proud of you and I know your Mom is too. Big hugs to you! Praise Jesus indeed! :)

rev said...

DARCY, you look AWESOME. You always did with the long and curly hair, but your new hair looks soooo good on you. Wow, you hottie:) and i've got teary eyes by your story....
XX
Rev

RACHEL =) said...

OH MY GOSH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WOW, that was a lot of hair ---- but how totally awesome that you gave it to Locks of Love!!! Sweet, sweet, sweet!!
And you look SUPER cute, girlie!!! I love it!!
And I am all chocked up right now... reading everything about your mom... wow, this post is amazing... you should scrap it right away! =)

Erin said...

It looks fantastic and I'm so proud of you for doing this!

Anonymous said...

Wow Darcy! what a wonderful thing to do! I really do admire your self-less-ness that stands out even in your blogging. And lets not forget the new look, which looks beautiful! you rock the short hair!!!

Elizabeth said...

ok, so when I first saw the scissors at that lOng tail.. i was thinking. holy moly, this is going to be one SHORT hair cut..(like they'd have to razor ya).. Your hair looks so cute!! too bad you did'nt have long enough at the beginning of the summer. such a cool summer cut!
props to you for doing this in honor of your mom.
my brother cut off 12 inches and donated it to LOL a few months ago.
and yep, its JUST HAIR!!

Elizabeth said...

ps: you're gonna drive D wild now that you 'have a neck!" LOL

Tracy said...

You look FAB! Good for you!!
My 11-yr-old dd (you can see her in my blog banner, the one w/ glasses) is almost ready to cut her hair for the same cause. Awesome!

Kara said...

congrats!! what an amazing thing to do!!

you new 'do' looks great!!

sarah said...

Darcy...you have me in tears.
You mom is looking down on you with such pride.
such pride!
Your haircut is gorgeous.
You are gorgeous.
And you are amazing...
thank you for sharing this with us.
xoxox

Alison said...

You look so beautiful Drace! Your momma is so looking down on you with big proud momma eyes! What a great way to honor her memory. And thank you for donating to LOL- you never know, maybe I could have your hair if/when my leaves me. :)

ali mclaughlin said...

So sorry about your mom Darcy! Such a sweet thing to do.. and I LOVE your hair!

Kirsten said...

Your post made me cry. Your Mom would be so proud of you. That's awesome. And, you're sporting a cute new look to boot!

amber said...

Wow, Darcy! Just wow! I was moved to tears by this post. What an amazing thing to do. And your new cut looks soooo good. Absolutely love it!

christy marie said...

You are awesome! Ditto to what most everyone said! I love ya, girl!

Kimber McGray said...

YOU ROCK!

How awesome for you to be able to do this!

The new look is ADORABLE!

kimber

Shirley said...

What an awesome thing to do! And you look so SEXY!!!!!

gabbyfek said...

you are the greatest.
seriously.
you are love embodied and you inspire me, darcy. so much.
lots of love to you, beautiful girl.
xoxox,
g

Dina said...

I am SO proud of you! I forgot what you looked like with short hair and you are adorable as always! Darcy, some person is going to be blessed by your selflessness. More than that, Jesus will be glorified. I love you Dace!

Robyn said...

Darcy you look exceptionally lovely and I'm so sure you Mom is just bursting with PRIDE!

jeri hoag said...

Darcy, your post brought tears to my eyes. What an awesome thing to do! You look fabulous!
Jeri

Darin said...

I'm proud of you too babe! I'm glad that you stuck through all of the hot days with the long hair. And yes, you do look fantastic in your new look.

Lov you!

Wendy said...

Love the new 'do. So glad you were able to do this. Hair doesn't matter when you are beautiful on the inside out!

island jen said...

oh Darcy...your story just brought me to tears...i was just flooded with memories of my girlfriend that passed away last year of cancer...and i remember all the hat shopping we used to do because she had lost all of her hair...thanks for bringing back the memories and a good cry! hugs sweetie!

Tina said...

I am a puddle of tears here! I have a biopsy on Wednesday am so terrified, and have not told a soul in the world except my husband and now I read this story and you fill me with hope and joy and inspiration. I know you don't know me but I will never forget this story, the story of your mothers faith and stength and of your love and spirit! Thank you!

Nichole Duenke said...

darcy, i can't even begin to tell you how much reading this has lightened my heart! you are just such a wonderful woman & continue to inspire me in my walk with Christ & everyday endeavors! you look BEAUTIFUL with your hair..i love that syle & what a beautiful, priceless tribute to your mom & for helping someone who needs it. so completely blessed to call you a friend and thanks for making me tear up & smile all at the same time! GOD BLESS YOU LOVE!!
love, nicholew :)

Create It Simply said...

I found your blog from the link in the pub. Love it! Such a wonderful thing you did. I also really like your banner and I agree..Jeremy Camp is awesome! I will definately be back here again! Have a great weekend!

Gina said...

-The story made me cry...not only for the loss of the hair but retention of the love and support of your mom! You are blessed...

Sarah said...

Oy- you just made me completely LOSE IT. Bawling like a baby-style lost it. You see, in May my husband and mom were diagnosed with cancer within a week of each other. Hubby was able to get surgery and treatment relatively fast after diagnosis=thyroid cancer. Literally a treatable pain in the neck type cancer. My mom on the other hand- aggressive breast cancer. She's undergoing radiation therapy right now (every day of the week)and will immediately follow that with an agressive chemo treatment around Christmas. They anticipate/expect that she'll lose her hair and fingernails,etc within the first 7 days after her first treatment.... it's all just still surreal. A shock. But what strength it brings! We've already learned and grown so much through this experience. And we know God's hand is on her (and my hubby) and that His will will be done. But STILL...it's a blow that's hard to recover from. Thank you for sharing your story and the blessing you've passed on to others with this story, your scrapbook pages and this blog. You plant seeds everyday!!!

Felicia said...

Darcy that's an awesome thing you did. I'm sure your mother would be very proud. You look great with your new do. =)