Recently while going about my usual sweeping my hair into a ponytail I glanced into the mirror and caught sight of something gleaming back at me. It stopped me in mid brush stroke as I leaned in towards the mirror to try and take a closer look.
There was no denying what I was seeing. A gray hair staring haughtily back at me.
"I can't be getting gray hair," was my first thought and I reached up and yanked the offending thing right out.
A few days later several more appeared in apparent protest against the unfair treatment of their comrade. I was now faced with the decision whether or not I want to pluck those out also. In my mind I could see more and more appearing and if I continue plucking I would soon have no hair.
After weighing those two options I decided I would rather have a few gray hair than bald patches. I'm not sure what I did to earn them, but since they seem to be here to stay I'm trying to happily accept them. Hopefully that will keep others from joining their ranks too rapidly.
Not being Amish any longer does give me one more option. Maybe, just maybe, I'll have to pay someone to hide the gray for me if it keeps getting more obvious.
My mom always says, "If only other things would hurt as little as gray hair - no pain at all!" So that has become my motto as well. My hair colour is from God and is part of who I am, be it black, brown, blonde...and yes, gray. Why would I want to change it unnaturally?
ReplyDeleteI found my first gray hair six weeks ago and was appalled! I'm only 26 :(
ReplyDeleteMy hair colour has come from a bottle since my first gray hair appeared at 25.....
ReplyDeleteI just got a colour that matched my own. Worked beautifully!
At 35, I'm frightened by the volume of gray hairs sprouting up daily. I feel too young to have "wisdom" hairs. LOL! Right now I just get a few highlights put into several strands of my hair a few times a year, but I'm not afraid to get my color from a bottle. I will fight the grays with any weapon available for at least another decade. :)
ReplyDeleteI have lots of gray mixed in with my "real" color of dishwater blonde. It doesn't bother me in the least. Whatever color I have is the color God has given me and I am happy to accept it. Seriously. After all, it's not the color of your hair, it's the person under the hair that counts.
ReplyDeleteBlessings,
Betsy
Grey hair can look very lovely. I m fortunate that my hair is so fair that the white/grey doesn't show!
ReplyDeleteI've dyed my hair since I was in my mid-twenties. Both my sister and my mom had auburn hair, but mine was mouse gray. When my second daughter was born with red hair my then-husband insisted she wasn't his child, so I just dyed my hair auburn, and have continued to do so ever since. My best friends are Lady Clairol and Mary Kay!
ReplyDeleteI am 52 and found my first gray hairs when I was in high school. Started dying my hair in my early 20's till November of last year. I decided to go natural after all these years. Got tired of the many trips to the hair salon and the expense that came with it. Now I look like a skunk with the white roots growing out.
ReplyDeleteI was 20 when I first noticed a grey hair, at least 6 inches long while putting my hair up. Now I'm 24, and there's enough of them to be visible when my hair's parted down the middle (they used to just be on the sides and so my hair hanging down hid them).
ReplyDeleteI was 26 when my hair started turning gray. I vowed it would never be gray and starting coloring it at home. Now I am chemotherapy my hair is growing in pure white so I guess that I will be happy with it the way it is.
ReplyDeleteI have a relationship with Miss Clariol.....With coupons I can get it for $5 a box, or less. depending on my hair length, it takes me 1 or 2 boxes. I cut it off, then grow it out again for locks of love. My moms side of the family starts getting grey in their teens. My dads side in their 80's. I had to take after my mom in the field of hair....
ReplyDeleteFound my first grey at 24, now I am struggling to find the brown ones!
ReplyDeletePost chemotherapy-caused baldness, my hair came back grey - quite a shock for me as it was black before, but I decided I was just glad to have hair of any kind and if God had decided that I was old enough - and perhaps wise enough? - to have hair that colour, so be it. It used to be a badge of experience and wisdom to have grey hair but now we see it as a sign of being past our useful phase of life, which is so sad.
ReplyDeleteThis is too funny. You know that girl whose hair came off when she held that curling iron thing in her hair too long? If you decide to add a bit of color, don't leave it on too long and end up with purple or something. HAHA Actually your kids would probably get a BIG kick out of that!
ReplyDeleteYou are too cute! I am actually looking forward to a few grays hairs someday, maybe it's because I was the baby of the family...I'm am always trying to be just a little older :) I say, accept it, dying is so much work! I'd rather see gray than a ring around the top of someone's head where they late getting a hair dye! www.sugarspiceandincense.com
ReplyDeleteIt runs in my family to begin going grey in your 30s (over 30 years ago for me!) I had naturally dark hair, so when a few came in they were very noticeable. I colored my hair a few times, but it grows quickly, so between the expense & hassle, I decided what will be will be. It helped that my husband likes it "natural" whatever that is. It seems that NO one wants grey hair and I think that makes a sad statement on how we feel about the elders of our society and also about who we each genuinely are. I am also concerned about all the chemicals we are constantly exposed to and pouring into our environment, so why contribute to that simply because of our own vanity? I am no gorgeous spring beauty, but I am happy with who I am & how I look - it is, after all, how I was created to be.
ReplyDeleteHaving said all this, I do enjoy your blog & read it often, although I seldom comment.
I grew up blond. But at thirty began to go platinum. I just tell people I'm moving up in the world... going from gold to platinuum!!! I did use Henna for a couple years and masqueraded as a red head, but decided to go back to my natural state. I know... it's a heartrending time... those first hairs... but you'll still be beautiful- no matter which choice you make.
ReplyDeleteI was only 17 when I first found gray hair! I was 27 when I decided I needed to stop plucking them out ... or else I'd have a bald spot! I know that God is the one who gave me my hair color, but ... my gray hair is not a pretty shade of gray... if it were white or silver that would be fine, but it's "mouse gray" and makes my face look pale and tired. I wanted to look like a young mom of 3 boys, not their grandmother, so I prayerfully considered coloring and I have been coloring my hair for a while, now. I used a permanent one at first, but became more and more sensitive to it as I got older. I had it done professionally for a few years, but that was expensive. Now, I use one that is NOT permanent that is lighter (medium golden brown) than my own color (regular brown) so that it pretty much just gives me auburn highlights. The gray hairs actually come out looking more blonde than brown. Even though this color (Natural Instincts) is not permanent, it does not wash out as quickly as some. When it starts to grow out, it has lightened even more and my roots barely show.
ReplyDeleteAt 60, I'm old enough to let it go "mouse gray" and just as soon as I decide to cut my hair, I'm going to let it go..... *sigh*
My mom is in her 80's and is just starting to go gray. She says that maybe if her hair was gray she'd get more consideration for her age! LOL
ReplyDeleteMy hair has gotten darker with age, but the hair at my temples has gone gray. My hair's long and fine, and no matter what I do, after an hour it looks like I just got out of bed, so dying it wouldn't be worth it even if I were so inclined.
I found a brand that I like that doesn't damage my hair, I can do it myself, and it only costs $5-7 depending on if it's on sale or not. I love it. And even though I have to redo it every month or 2, it's so worth it and it's MUCH, MUCH cheaper than paying my stylist at the salon I go to. She says the same thing....do it at home, it's cheaper!
ReplyDeleteP.S. I'm 36 and found my first gray hair when I was 23 :P
ReplyDeleteAs I read your post this verse came to mind...
ReplyDeleteProverbs 16:31
Gray hair is a crown of splendor; it is attained in the way of righteousness.
Enjoy every gray hair! :)
When I read your post, immediately Proverbs 16:31 came to mind (and I see it did to Allison also). Natural Instincts works great for me and makes me feel better about myself. Very easy to use and very natural looking, and you won't feel guilty spending the big $$. Go for it!
ReplyDeleteJust bought some Natural Instinct (Light Golden Brown) tonight and plan to use it tomorrow. It will brighten my otherwise drab hair and the gray hair will look like dark blonde! People have asked me if I've added highlights ...hahaha!!!! NO, I'M COVERING THEM UP!!!
ReplyDeleteI found my first grey hair at 28 or so. First thought: "Blonde? How am I going blonde at my age?" Heh. Now I get highlights every few months. I don't mind a few grey hairs, but don't wanna be ALL grey. It's your hair---do as you feel led.
ReplyDeleteEmbrace it!
ReplyDeleteGo Gray!
:)
Helen