I was so proud of my daughter last week.  Kyla decided to donate her hair to the Pantene Beautiful Lengths program.  I made that same decision last month.

Kyla has not had any real haircuts her entire life.  She loves her long, blonde hair.  It grows very thick and slightly wavy.  When brushed straight, it came to the small of her back.

Kyla thought that her hair would make a pretty wig for someone who needed it.  I assured her that it would.  Upon her request, I scheduled her a hair appointment.

These are the before and after photographs of Kyla.

Kyla before the hair donation.

Kyla's new hairdo.

Kyla was very happy to donate a foot of her hair; although, she was not planning to make that long of a donation.  She only intended to donate 9 inches.  As the hairdresser began to make the cut, her hair was so thick that the scissors would not cut through.  Eventually, the hair was cut; it was just shorter than originally intended.  Kyla was still pleased with the results.

She immediately noticed how light her hair felt.  The next day I asked her if she liked her haircut.  She replied, “My hair is always untangled!”  Getting her hair completely brushed through was becoming a problem for Kyla.  Now it is very easy to comb through her hair.  It is still long enough to put up in a pony-tail.  It is probably easier now than before because there is so much less hair.

I am very happy that Kyla likes her haircut.  I think that it is very cute.  Most importantly, I am proud that my daughter wanted to give her hair away.  It is a selfless act.

It reminds me of the short story, “The Gift of the Magi” by O. Henry.  It is not a perfect comparison.  Della donates her hair in order to raise funds for her husband’s Christmas gift.  Simultaneously, her husband sells his prized possession so that he may buy his wife a beautiful comb for her hair.  Both characters make sacrifices for someone that they love.

Kyla’s gift was perhaps more special because she gave away her prized possession for a complete stranger.  I wonder what she will think of this classic story.  As I write this article, I have decided to read her “The Gift of the Magi” this week and discuss it with her afterward.

Trying to cut through Kyla's hair.

The process of hair donation is quite simple.  You show up to your appointment with clean and dry hair.  You put your hair in a low pony-tail.  You measure making sure the hair is at least 8 inches long.  You have someone cut your hair.  Then you place the pony-tail in a padded envelope.  Address the envelope and pay for the postage.  It really is that easy.

If you have ever wanted to donate your hair, I encourage you to take the plunge.  Make the appointment.  It is scary; any kind of change is scary.  Just remember, your hair will grow back.  To read all the rules and regulations about hair donation, check out Pantene’s website.

Tags: hair donation, O. Henry, Pantene Beautiful Lengths, The Gift of the Magi

This entry was posted on Monday, April 5th, 2010 at 5:45 am and is filed under For Women, Homeschooling, Homesteading. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.