Those Beautiful Tresses

My younger son was a full term baby. I was completely amazed seeing him make a dashing entry into this world with jet black hair. I admired him for a few days until I got used to his soft hair. Everybody who would come to see him would wonder and discuss on how come he had such lovely hair on birth. My elder son was born with very little hair but when he grew each month his hair started gaining the beautiful brownish golden color. They would all get curled up on his fair skin and chubby cheeks. Somehow, I was getting too possessive about the birth hair as both my boys grew up.

I never wanted to ever let my elder sons let go of his “goldilocks” but as per ritual we had to get his mundan (hair shaving ceremony) done. I would always style his hair in such a way that they would look so adorable.These beautiful locks, as they grew in length, would become unmanageable and I would clip them up with some tiny clips. Both the boys, hyper as they are would tax me up with their activities. But at the end of the day, I always felt and would find my end of day peace when I would run my fingers in their soft hair and would feel that this hair should never go. For my elder son, since the hair shaving ceremony was the first of its kind for me to witness in my living years, I was not very optimistic about his support to cut his hair. I persuaded and kept pleading innocently to my husband if I could preserve his one small lock of hair. May be yes I was too foolishly possessive about the thought that – this was the hair which he developed when he was within me and the only thing with him that he has grown up with in all these months of infanthood. How could I just let them go? Today when I think about it, it feels like a foolish thought of an over sentimental and emotional mother!!

We got his hair shaved in a temple. The entire episode was traumatic, he protested and refused to get his hair shaved. He howled, yelled and cried and I was there seeing his hair being shaved off. I stood there far away watching him crying his lungs out, but just hated to see his half and then full shaven head. As years passed by, his hair grew with a very typical hairstyle and that made him cuter and handsome with the passing years.

Now after a seven year gap, I again went through this emotional turbulence of shaving off my younger sons jet black hair. On birth his hair were neatly trimmed, as if he came out with his haircut done. But because he had so much of voluminous hair on his head, his hair would sweat a lot and he would catch a cold. As the months passed, his hair started curving on his neck and he would look so delicate as if he had a trendy haircut. Seeing his tied hair, people often mistook him to be a girl. As if they never noticed him wearing a shorts and boy t-shirt. I was reliving the pleasure of feeling the soft touch of lovely tresses. In the park, my little one’s hair would be a topic of discussion and some would envy saying that wish our daughters had such lovely hair. But, the only negative of his unmanageable and voluminous hair was that he would every time get heat boils on his neck, catch a cold just like that. Ultimately, it was decided that we would have to shave his hair. This time my elder son, emotional as he was about this like me, chose to not witness it. So did I. I never wanted to go through the ordeal of seeing his straight silk fringes getting snipped off. The surprising part of the entire episode was that my barely year old baby didn’t cry at all. I was apprehensive he would get scared or would not like the idea of being seated in his father’s lap doing nothing but seeing his hair falling off.

After all that, my baby in a few hours time looked like a boy. A big boy, who gave me a kiss after having his head bald, as if he was assuring me not to sulk. It’s been a while that he has gone bald and I can see his hair pricking me when I pick him up or hold his head. He is truly looking adorable and it feels –“Oh! You are growing wish you get that same texture of hair again. I selfishly would want to run my fingers again through your hair and would feel yes, these are your beautiful tresses!!”

Moushumi says- After 12 years of banking experience, I chose to take a sabbatical for my kids and be an enterprising mother. I am a Bachelor in Commerce, Masters in Finance Management and done diploma in creative writing .Writing is my passion and wish to develop it further. My husband is my inspiration to all my aspirations. I am a mother of two sons, my elder being 6 yrs old and younger about 1 month old . I love traveling and writing about places visited and every thought that fascinates me. All this can be read in my blog Life Bytes.